Birch

DISTRIBUTION
Eastern U.S., principally Northern and Lake states.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Birch has a white sapwood and light reddish brown heartwood. The wood is generally straight-grained with a fine, uniform texture, and is generally characterized by a plain, often curly or wavy pattern.

WORKING PROPERTIES
The wood works fairly easily, glues well with care, takes stain extremely well, and nails and screws satisfactorily where pre-boring is advised. It dries rather slowly with little degrade, but it has moderately high shrinkage, so is susceptible to movement in performance.

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Birch is a heavy wood, hard, and strong. It has very good benign properties, with good crushing strength and shock resistance.

AVAILABILITY
Reasonable availability, but more limited if selected for color.

MAIN USES
Furniture, millwork and paneling, doors, flooring, kitchen cabinets, turnings, and toys.