About the Timber A brief description of the timbers used Click on an image to enlarge

English Maple (or Field Maple) There are many species of Maple but the Field Maple in the only one native to the U.K. It is found growing in woods, scrub and hedgerows, and on chalk lowland. It is widely planted in gardens and parks due to its compact habit, tolerance of pollution and rich autumn colours. Unlike most other hardwoods, the sapwood of maple is most commonly used rather than its heartwood. The Sapwood colour ranges from nearly white to an off-white cream colour sometimes with a reddish or golden hue. The grain is generally straight but may be wavy it has a fine, even texture. It is fairly easy to work with both hand and machine tools. It turns and finishes well. Being durable it is sometimes used for flooring, musical instruments (used by both Fender and Gibson in their guitar construction), cutting boards, butcher blocks (as well as Beech in the UK), workbenches and other turned objects and specialty wood items

Eucalyptus Eucalyptus is a species was originally native to Australia, but it has now spread to over places. Many people claim eucalyptus is the best wood for outdoor furniture, as it's cheaper than teakwood and more durable. There are over 700 varieties of eucalyptus and despite some builders still using it for furniture, it's generally not suitable as it is quite heavy and shrinks when dry, which can cause splitting and cracking. Today it is mostly used for smaller projects such as fence posts and poles. It is an excellent source of fuelwood worldwide, as it can quickly regenerate after cutting. When its wood burns, it leaves little ash and produces good charcoal. Eucalyptus is also known for its medicinal properties – its oil is used to help soothe and heal various ailments, including asthma, bronchitis, sore muscles, gingivitis, and acne.

Hackberry Hackberry is a member of the Elm family. There is little difference between sapwood and heartwood which is yellowish grey to light brown with yellow streaks. It has as irregular grain, occasionally straight but sometimes interlocked, with a fine, uniform texture. The wood planes and turn well. It is mainly used for Furniture, kitchen cabinets, millwork, doors and moulding.

Hickory Heartwood from the Hickory tree tends to be light to medium brown, with a reddish hue; sapwood is a paler yellowish brown. If you can get boards with contrasting heartwood and sapwood, these make nice furniture. The Grain is usually straight, though occasionally wavy, with a medium texture. It is a difficult to work, with tear out being common during machining operations if cutting edges are not kept sharp. It stains and finishes well. Hickory is among the hardest and strongest of woods native to the United States and is denser, stiffer, and harder than either White Oak or Maple. The wood is commonly used where strength or shock-resistance is important such as tool handles, ladder rungs, wheel spokes, flooring, etc.

Holm Oak Holm oak is an evergreen broadleaf tree that can grow to 20m and develop a huge, rounded crown. The bark is black and finely cracked, and twigs are slender and covered with light brown felt-like hairs. They are resistant to salt-spray from the sea, and are often planted as a windbreak in coastal areas. However, they can’t stand freezing conditions and during severe winters they are prone to dying or losing their leaves, so are more common in the south of the UK. In addition to being planted as windbreaks along the sea coast, their ability to tolerate shade and air pollution makes them ideal as street trees and for planting in city parks. It was introduced to Britain in the late 1500s. The Romans used the wood for making the wheels of carts and carriages, as well as for agricultural tools whilst in ancient Greece, the leaves of the holm oak were used to tell the future and they were also used to make crowns to honour people. The acorn was also a symbol of fertility and was worn on jewellery to increase chances of conception. Holm oak timber is incredibly hard and strong.. Today it is sometimes used for firewood as it is slow and long lasting. Holm oak acorns are fed to pigs reared for Ibérico ham.

Idigbo Idigbo is a yellow-brown coloured hardwood used mainly for paint-finished interior shop-fitting and joinery including windows and doors etc. Idigbo timber is a light and moderately durable hardwood, it is commonly used as an inexpensive alternative to Oak. However, it is now regarded as a rare wood and new timber should only be from licenced producers.

Kentucky Coffeetree The Kentucky Coffee Tree is so named because early settlers (particularly in the state of Kentucky) used roasted seeds from this tree to make a coffee substitute. The heartwood is an orange to reddish brown with the sapwood is a yellowish white sapwood and is very narrow and well defined against heartwood. It is very similar in appearance to Ash and Oak. The grain is straight and porous, with a coarse, uneven texture. The Coffee Tree has good working characteristics and nearly every machining operation can be done with good results and it finishes well. It is mostly used for furniture, cabinet making and fence posts.

Iroko Iroko wood is a tough, dense, highly durable wood with a rich coloured grain and is the ideal substitute for teak in many DIY projects. Iroko can be found growing on the west coast of the African continent, stretching from Ghana to Mozambique. Due to its highly durable nature, African Iroko wood is ideal for a range of tasks including cabinet making, panelling, decking, joinery and kitchen work. It is also used in boat building due to its durability. It works well but can dull tools. It takes nails and screws well and can be brought up to a high-quality finish. The dust makes it imperative to use a face mask when working with this wood.