G - H

Other common names: okoum, angouma, combogala, n'goumi, and mofoumou. 

Distribution: A very valuable commercial timber that grows in equatorial Africa. 

Tree Data:  

Timber Properties : Usually straight grained but sometimes wavy (producing an attractive striping on quarter-sawn surfaces), uniform texture, natural luster, pinkish heartwood. Light, soft, relatively weak wood with low stiffness and shock resistance, low decay resistance and moderate stability. Poor steam bending rating. 

Working Characteristics: Works fairly easily although silica in wood results in above average blunting of cutting edges. Can be nailed and screwed without pre-drilling and glues without trouble. Stains and varnishes satisfactorily with ample scraping and sanding. 

Common Uses: Uses include plywood, blockboard, joinery, moldings and other interior trim, fine furniture, cigar boxes, construction, paneling, and decorative veneers.

Tree of 25 the 35 meters of height, gift in forests of the states of Pará until the Rio Grande Do Sul. Its wood is used for civil construction, pisos, would marcenaria, decorative esquadrias, panels, etc. 880 kg very durable

see Cherry, European

Heartwood is light pink darkening to rich brown , interlocked grain giving a silky finish

Works well but shows some wood borer beetle activity

see Mahogany (So. Amer)

Sapwood is not well-defined and is lighter in colour than the heartwood, which is light grey-brown to light brownish red. Grain is straight to shallowly interlocked. Texture is very fine and even. This is an important marine piling timber in Sabah. It is also an attractive wood for furniture. Other uses include flooring, interior finishing, panelling, moulding, door and window frames, pallets and crates.  

see Teak, Burmese

 Other common names:

 Distribution:  

Tree Data:  

Timber Properties : The wood is very similar to Chengal except that the green tinge of colour of freshly sawn timber is not so pronounced in Giam and that ripple marks are absent. Sapwood only moderately distinct from the heartwood unless blue-stained. The colour of heartwood is yellow-brown, weathering to a dark red-brown. Grain is deeply interlocked. Texture is very fine to moderately fine and even. 

Working Characteristics:  

Common Uses: Suitable for all heavy construction, bridges, wharves, posts, beams, joists, heavy-duty flooring, transmission posts, raiway sleepers, lorry and truck bodies, keels and framework of boats, container floor boards and heavy-duty laboratory benches. 

see Western Red Cedar

see Western Red Cedar

see Sugar Pine

Brazil Fresh heartwood is bright yellow, drying to golden yellow. Exposure to light and air changes this wood to brown or russet. Aging changes most pieces from the yellow of the freshly cut wood to a deep honey orange brown.

see Mahogany, African

Other common names: Ron-ron Tigerwood 

Distribution: Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Guatemala Goncalo alves has been heavily exploited because of its great beauty. It is now rare outside of the protection of national parks, and is listed as threatened in "Arboles Maderables en Peligro de Extinción en Costa Rica. 

Tree Data: Goncalo alves is a large canopy tree, sometimes reaching 120 feet in height in the natural rainforest, with a trunk 3 feet in diameter. The tree has a clear, straight cylindrical bole for two-thirds or more of its height, above a small buttress. 

Timber Properties : Goncalo alves ranges in color from light to reddish brown to deep mahogany red-brown with a striking figure created by beautiful, bold, brown to nearly black irregular markings or striping. The texture is fine to medium and uniform, with a fine grain, varying from straight to interlocked and wavy. Tigerwood & Goncalo Alves are the same speciesTigerwood  is a boldly striped specie which has an orangish/reddish brown background with wide dark brownish black striping.  WFI offers a selection chosen specially for its bold striping, which we liken to the striping found in “vanilla fudge” ice cream. Tigerwood , as the name suggests, is a specie which exhibits a wide range of color/striping.  The striping can vary from fine lines to bold “brush strokes”.  The background color can range from light tans to darker orange browns. Tigerwood  exhibits a large degree of color change with a pronounced darkening of the background under the stripes from an orangey tan to a deep reddish brown color, which then in turn makes the striping less contrasting and more subtle 

Working Characteristics: In spite of its high density, goncalo alves turns readily, carves well, finishes very smoothly, and takes a beautiful natural polish. The wood is rated highly durable and has strength values considerably higher than any well-known U.S. species. 

Common Uses: Among the most outstanding and attractive woods, goncalo alves is highly prized for its outstanding beauty. It is used for fine furniture and cabinetry, carving, turnery such as bowls and trays, specialty items such as knife handles, brush backs, and archery bows, and for decorative and figured veneers. 

General : 

Other common names: Kopie Kabukalli  Other Common Names: Saino, Sapino (Colombia), Kopi (Surinam), Kabukalli (Guyana), Goupie (French Guiana), Cupiuba (Brazil). 

Distribution: Uplands of the lower Amazon, the Guianas, and the Serrania de San Lucas, Carare-Opon, Rio Cauca Valley, and other regions of Colombia. 

Tree Data: The Tree: A large buttressed, semi-deciduous, canopy tree; grows to a height of 130 ft and with diameters to 36 in., but usually 20 to 24 in. 

Timber Properties : The Wood:  General Characteristics: Heartwood light reddish brown, darkening superficially upon exposure; distinct but not sharply demarcated from thick brownish or pinkish sapwood Luster medium to rather high; texture medium to coarse; grain straight to interlocked; odor is fetid when fresh but dissipates upon drying though still apparent. Weight: Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) 0.72; air-dry density 54 pcf.  Drying and Shrinkage: Moderately difficult to air-season, dries at a moderate rate with only slight warping and checking. Durability: Laboratory evaluations indicate good resistance to attack by both brown and white-rot fungi, but rated only slightly to moderately resistant to decay in field tests in Guyana. Resistant to dry-wood termite attack but has little resistance to marine borers.  Preservation: Heartwood is very resistant and sapwood is moderately resistant to preservation treatments using either open-tank or pressure-vacuum systems. 

Working Characteristics: Working Properties: It is rated fair to good in most operations but torn and chipped grain is common in planing because of interlocked grain. Coarser material requires filler to obtain a smooth finish. 

Common Uses:  General : Heavy construction, industrial flooring, furniture components. A highly favored general purpose timber in the Guianas. 

Japanese White Pine) Attains a height of 80 feet and diameter of 25 inches. Wood is light and soft, used in house and ship building and for charcoal. 

see Cocobolo

Has the widest distribution of any true fir in the West, ranging from Vancouver Is. south near the Coast to Sonoma County, California, and south into the northern Rocky Mountains.  A large tree, sometimes 300' high and over 4' in diameter.  The wood is light, soft, coarse-grained and very perishable in contact with soil.  Used for common lumber purposes, boxes and crates, and paper pulp.