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

BOTANICAL NAME:

ORIGIN:

North America – Eastern United States, principally Northern and Lake States

COMMON NAMES:

Birch, Yellow Birch, Red Birch, Sweet Birch, Paper Birch, Black Birch, Cherry Birch, White Birch, Canoe Birch, Silver Birch.

JANKA HARDNESS:

1260 – 2% softer than Northern Red Oak

DIMENSIONAL STABILITY:

Average – Change Coefficient .00338 – 8% more stable than Northern Red Oak

RELATIVE ABUNDANCE:

Reasonably available, but more limited if selected for the specific color, either heartwood (red birch) or sapwood (white birch).

INTERESTING FACTS:

Birch trees are deciduous and have a thin papery bark that varies in color from tan to bright white. The bark tends to continuously peel off in sheets. The expansion of the trunk is what causes the bark to peel. A birch tree will have both male and female cones. The female cones will break apart in the fall, releasing hundreds of tiny seeds with wings. The tree is also known as the Canoe Birch because of the fact that Native Americans used the bark for constructing their canoes.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

In Yellow Birch, the most common type of Birch used for flooring, the sapwood is creamy yellow or pale white and the heartwood is a light reddish brown The grain is straight, closed and even with medium figuring. Generally characterized by a plain and often curly or wavy pattern.

COLOR CHANGE:

Information currently unavailable

MAIN USES:

Birch has excellent turning properties and is used quite often to make spools, bobbins, dowels and bowls. It is highly valued as a plywood source. Birch is also used for flooring, doors, musical instruments, boxes, baskets and furniture making.

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES:

The wood of yellow birch is heavy, hard and strong. It has very good bending properties, with good crushing strength and shock resistance.

WORKING PROPERTIES:

Birch 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.