Wood Species Guide — Properties, Uses & Sustainability

Southern Yellow Pine (SYP)

Pinus spp. (P. palustris, P. elliottii, P. echinata, P. taeda)

Southern Yellow Pine is the workhorse of the Southern U.S. lumber market. It's the strongest commercially available softwood in North America, making it the go-to species for structural framing. SYP accepts pressure treatment exceptionally well due to its open cell structure, which is why the vast majority of pressure-treated lumber in the U.S. is SYP. Reclaimed heart pine (longleaf pine) is a prized subspecies with exceptional density, gorgeous grain patterns, and natural rot resistance that far exceeds new-growth SYP.

Available reclaimed: Heart pine flooring, beams, and dimensional lumber

Longleaf Pine (Heart Pine)

Pinus palustris

Longleaf pine once covered 90 million acres across the Southeast, from Virginia to Texas. Logging during the 1880s–1930s timber boom reduced old-growth stands to less than 3% of their original range. Today, old-growth longleaf pine is available almost exclusively as reclaimed lumber, salvaged from the warehouses, mills, and homes built during that era.

What makes reclaimed heart pine exceptional is its density. Old-growth trees grew slowly over 200–500 years, producing wood with 20–30 growth rings per inch — compared to 4–8 rings per inch in modern plantation pine. This extreme density gives heart pine a Janka hardness that rivals many hardwoods, making it one of the most durable flooring materials available anywhere. The rich amber color deepens with age and UV exposure, developing a warm, luminous patina that is unmistakable.

Available reclaimed: Flooring, beams, dimensional lumber, mantels — our most popular reclaimed species

Douglas Fir

Pseudotsuga menziesii

Douglas Fir is the premier structural softwood of the Pacific Northwest and one of the most important commercial timber species in the world. It has the highest stiffness-to-weight ratio of any North American softwood, making it ideal for long spans and heavy loads. The wood has a distinctive straight, pronounced grain pattern that is attractive in exposed applications. Old-growth Douglas Fir is especially prized for reclaimed timber beams, where tight growth rings create exceptional strength and visual appeal. Vertical grain (VG) Douglas Fir is sought after for flooring and finish work.

Available reclaimed: Timber beams, dimensional lumber, flooring

White Oak

Quercus alba

White Oak is one of the most versatile and durable hardwoods in North America. What sets it apart from Red Oak is its closed, tyloses-filled pore structure that makes it virtually waterproof — which is why it's been used for centuries in boat building and barrel making. White Oak has excellent rot resistance even without treatment, making it suitable for outdoor applications where other hardwoods would fail. Its warm, golden-brown color deepens beautifully with age. Quarter-sawn White Oak reveals stunning medullary ray patterns (the “ray fleck”) that were the hallmark of Arts and Crafts and Mission-style furniture.

Available reclaimed: Flooring, beams, barrel staves, dimensional lumber

Red Oak

Quercus rubra

Red Oak is the most widely available hardwood in North America and one of the most popular choices for flooring, cabinetry, and furniture. It has an open, porous grain structure that accepts stain well, allowing it to be colored to match a wide range of design aesthetics. Unlike White Oak, Red Oak has open pores (lacking tyloses) which means it is not water-resistant and should not be used for outdoor applications or anywhere it will contact moisture. Red Oak machines well, glues reliably, and finishes beautifully. Its consistent availability and moderate price make it the default hardwood for many interior projects.

Available reclaimed: Flooring, dimensional lumber, furniture stock

Bald Cypress

Taxodium distichum

Bald Cypress is the iconic wood of the American South, growing naturally in the swamps and bottomlands from Delaware to Texas. Its heartwood contains cypressene, a natural preservative oil that gives the wood exceptional resistance to rot, decay, and insect attack — even without chemical treatment. Old-growth cypress is nearly impervious to decay and has been found still sound after centuries of exposure. This makes it the traditional choice for siding, shutters, and exterior trim throughout the Gulf Coast. New-growth cypress has less heartwood and reduced decay resistance compared to old-growth, which is why reclaimed cypress is so highly valued.

Available reclaimed: Siding, beams, dimensional lumber, flooring — highly sought after

Western Red Cedar

Thuja plicata

Western Red Cedar is prized for its natural beauty, aromatic scent, and outstanding decay resistance. It contains natural thujaplicins — compounds toxic to fungi and bacteria — that protect the heartwood from rot without any chemical treatment. Cedar has the lowest density and least shrinkage of any commercial softwood, making it exceptionally dimensionally stable. It lies flat, stays straight, and resists warping. The trade-off is low structural strength: cedar is too soft for load-bearing applications. It excels in any application where weather resistance, beauty, and low weight matter more than strength.

Available reclaimed: Fencing, siding, dimensional lumber

Yellow Poplar (Tulipwood)

Liriodendron tulipifera

Poplar is the most affordable and widely available hardwood in the Eastern United States. Despite being classified as a hardwood (it is a deciduous angiosperm), it is one of the softest and lightest hardwoods and works more like a softwood. Its low cost, uniform texture, and excellent paintability make it the standard choice for paint-grade trim, moldings, and interior millwork. Poplar machines exceptionally well — it cuts cleanly, planes smoothly, sands easily, and holds paint better than most woods. Not suitable for outdoor use due to poor decay resistance.

Available reclaimed: Limited availability; dimensional lumber when salvaged

Hard Maple (Sugar Maple)

Acer saccharum

Hard Maple (Sugar Maple) is the hardest and strongest of the commonly available North American hardwoods. Its exceptional hardness and wear resistance make it the premier flooring species for high-traffic areas — it's the official wood of NBA basketball courts and bowling alleys. Maple's fine, uniform texture produces a smooth, elegant surface that finishes beautifully. Figured varieties — bird's eye, curly (tiger), and quilted maple — are highly prized for decorative applications and command premium prices. Not suitable for outdoor use.

Available reclaimed: Flooring (often from gymnasium and industrial floors)

White Ash

Fraxinus americana

White Ash has been America's tool handle and sporting goods wood for over a century. Its outstanding shock resistance — the ability to absorb impact without splitting — makes it the traditional choice for baseball bats, axe handles, hockey sticks, and oar shafts. Ash also excels for steam bending, making it ideal for curved furniture components like chair backs and boat ribs.

Important sustainability note: The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), an invasive beetle from Asia, has devastated ash populations across North America since its discovery in 2002. Hundreds of millions of ash trees have been killed, and the species is now considered critically threatened in many regions. Using reclaimed or salvage ash lumber is an excellent way to honor this valuable species while it faces ecological crisis. Many municipalities are removing infected trees, creating a supply of salvage-grade ash lumber.

Available reclaimed: Flooring, dimensional lumber from salvage operations

Black Cherry

Prunus serotina

Black Cherry is one of the premier American furniture woods, prized for its beautiful color that develops and deepens over time. Freshly milled cherry has a pinkish-brown hue that oxidizes to a rich, warm reddish-brown within weeks of UV exposure — a process that continues for years. This natural color development is considered one of cherry's greatest assets. The wood has a fine, straight grain with a satiny sheen that becomes almost luminous under a clear finish. Cherry machines and sands exceptionally well, producing surfaces that feel silky to the touch. It is the traditional choice for Shaker and colonial-style furniture. Figured cherry (curly and crotch figures) commands premium prices for veneer and specialty applications.

Available reclaimed: Limited — available when salvaged from historic furniture and cabinetry

Black Walnut

Juglans nigra

Black Walnut is America's premium domestic hardwood and one of the most sought-after furniture woods in the world. It is the only dark-colored native hardwood in North America, which makes it uniquely valuable for design applications where a rich, dark aesthetic is desired without the need for staining. Walnut has excellent dimensional stability, works easily with both hand and power tools, and takes an oil finish to a deep, lustrous sheen. Live-edge walnut slabs have become enormously popular for dining tables, desks, and bar tops. The wood also has good natural decay resistance, making it one of the few hardwoods suitable for semi-outdoor applications. Walnut burl, crotch, and figured material command some of the highest prices in the domestic lumber market.

Available reclaimed: Occasionally available as salvaged lumber and slabs; high demand

Hickory

Carya spp. (C. ovata, C. laciniosa, C. tomentosa, C. glabra)

Hickory is the strongest and hardest commercially available wood in North America. Its combination of extreme hardness, shock resistance, and bending strength is unmatched by any other domestic species. Hickory flooring has surged in popularity due to its rustic, dramatic grain pattern — the wide color variation between heartwood and sapwood creates a bold, character-rich appearance that defines the “rustic farmhouse” aesthetic. Hickory is notoriously difficult to work with hand tools due to its density, and it dulls blades quickly, but the results are exceptionally durable. Hickory is also the preferred wood for smoking meats, adding a rich, sweet-smoky flavor to barbecue.

Available reclaimed: Occasionally available in flooring and handle stock

Pecan

Carya illinoinensis

Pecan is technically a species of hickory, and it shares hickory's extreme hardness and dramatic grain character. What makes pecan distinctive in the Gulf South market is its local abundance — pecan is the state tree of Texas, and thousands of pecan trees are removed annually from orchards that have passed their productive years. This creates a unique regional supply of high-quality hardwood lumber. Pecan lumber features beautiful reddish-brown heartwood with pale sapwood, creating the same dramatic contrast that makes hickory flooring so popular. Pecan live-edge slabs are increasingly popular for custom tables and bar tops, with the natural edge highlighting the tree's distinctive bark texture.

Available: Slabs, dimensional lumber, and flooring from Texas and Louisiana orchards