Wood Types
Common Name(s): Limba, korina, afara, black limba, white limba
Distribution: Tropical western Africa
Janka Hardness: 670
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is a light yellowish to golden brown, sometimes with grey to nearly black streaks and veins. Wood with such darker figuring is referred to as black limba, while plain unfigured wood is called white limba. Sapwood is a pale greyish to yellowish brown, not clearly demarcated from the heartwood. Overall color tends to darken with age.
Black Limba
Common Name(s): Canarywood, Canary
Distribution: South America (from Panama down to southern Brazil)
Janka Hardness: 1,520
Color/Appearance: Heartwood color can vary a fair amount, from a pale yellow-orange to a darker reddish brown, usually with darker streaks throughout. Pale yellow sapwood is sharply demarcated from heartwood. Color tends to darken and homogenize with age
Canarywood
Common Name(s): Holly, American Holly
Distribution: Eastern United States
Janka Hardness: 1,020
Color/Appearance: Ideal lumber has a very uniform, pale white color with virtually no visible grain pattern. Knots are common, which can reduce the usable area of the wood. Can develop a bluish/gray fungal stain if not dried rapidly after cutting. Holly is usually cut during the winter and kiln dried shortly thereafter to preserve the white color of the wood.
Holly
Common Name(s): Purpleheart, amaranth, roxinho, violeta
Distribution: Central and South America (from Mexico down to southern Brazil)
Janka Hardness: 2,520
Color/Appearance: When freshly cut the heartwood of purpleheart can be a dull grayish/purplish brown. Upon exposure—usually within a few days—the wood becomes a deeper eggplant purple. With further age and exposure to UV light, the wood becomes a dark brown with a hint of purple.
Purple Heart
Common Name(s): Bloodwood, Satine
Distribution: Tropical South America
Janka Hardness: 2,900
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is a bright, vivid red. Color can darken to a darker brownish red over time with exposure to light.
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Bloodwood
Common Name(s): Aromatic Red Cedar, Eastern Redcedar
Distribution: Eastern North America
Janka Hardness: 900
Color/Appearance: Heartwood tends to be a reddish or violet-brown. Sapwood is a pale yellow color, and can appear throughout the heartwood as streaks and stripes.
Cedar
Common Name(s): Hard maple, sugar maple, rock maple
Distribution: Northeastern North America
Janka Hardness: 1,450
Color/Appearance: Unlike most other hardwoods, the sapwood of hard maple lumber is most commonly used rather than its heartwood. Sapwood color ranges from nearly white, to an off-white cream color, sometimes with a reddish or golden hue. The heartwood tends to be a darker reddish brown.
Maple
Common Name(s): Black walnut, American walnut
Distribution: Eastern United States
Janka Hardness:
Color/Appearance: Heartwood can range from a lighter pale brown to a dark chocolate brown with darker brown streaks. Color can sometimes have a grey, purple, or reddish cast. Sapwood is pale yellow-gray to nearly white.
Walnut
Common Name(s): Black cherry, American cherry
Distribution: Eastern North America
Janka Hardness:950
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is a light pinkish brown when freshly cut, darkening to a medium reddish brown with time and upon exposure to light. Wide sapwood is a pale yellowish color.
Cherry
Common Name(s): African padauk, vermillion
Distribution: Central and tropical west Africa
Janka Hardness: 1,710
Color/Appearance: Heartwood color can vary, ranging from a pale pinkish orange to a deep brownish red. Most pieces tend to start a vibrant reddish orange when freshly cut, darkening substantially over time to a reddish/purplish brown (some lighter-colored pieces can age to a grayish brown).
Padauk
Common Name(s): Zebrawood, zebrano, zingana
Distribution: West Africa
Janka Hardness: 1,830
Color/Appearance: Heartwood is a light brown or cream color with dark blackish brown streaks vaguely resembling a zebra’s stripes.