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Cypress Woodworks
14222 Cornelia,
Cypress Texas, 77429
(713) 591-0265
Butternut
Photo and data from Forest World
Common Names
==================================
Butternut
White walnut
Oilnut
Nogal
Nogal blanco
Nogal silvestre
Nuez meca
Tocte
Tropical walnut
Walnut
Common Uses
==================================
Cabinetmaking
Furniture
Instrument cases
Interior trim
Joinery
Millwork
Woodenware
Bedroom suites
Chairs
Chests
Desks
Dining-room furniture
Dowell pins
Dowells
Drawer sides
Floor lamps
Hatracks
Kitchen cabinets
Living-room suites
Moldings
Radio, stereo, TV cabinets
Rustic furniture
Stools
Tables
Wainscotting
Wardrobes
Species Distribution
==================================
REGIONS:
North America
COUNTRIES:
Canada
United States
Physical and Environmental Profile
==================================
Environmental Profile
Butternut is reported to be relatively secure within most of its natural habitat
in N. America, but its status in Mississippi is
officially classified as Rare, and it is Vulnerable in Delaware.
The status of the species in the state of Indiana is reported
to be either Extinct, Endangered, Vulnerable, or Rare
(Source - World Conservation Monitoring Center - 1992 ).
Butternut is also rated as either very rare and local throughout its range
(21 to 100 occurrences) or it is found locally and even abundantly at
some of its locations in a restricted range.
In some cases the species may actually be widespread,
but its abundance and condition may be declining rapidly with no known remedy.
High mortality, higher rates of infection, and rapid loss of
remaining uninfected trees to timber cutting may also be factors
(Source - The Nature Conservancy - Rank of relative endangerment based primarily
on the number of occurrences of the species globally).
Distribution
This species is reported to grow in New Brunswick, Ontario, and Quebec in Canada.
Its growth range in the United States is reported to be
Alabama, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, North Carolina,
Delaware, Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
Tennessee Valley, Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Illinois, Mississippi, South Carolina,
Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Georgia, Tennessee, and Indiana.
The species is usually found in hardwood forests and prefers
moist soils of valleys and slopes.
It also grows in dry rock soils.
Butternut is reported to tolerate greater temperature extremes than Black walnut.
Product Sources
Although some material from this species is reported to be available from
environmentally responsible sources, supplies of butternut are rather limited
and are getting even smaller.
The tree is reported to be more valuable for its nuts than for its lumber.
Tree Data
The tree is reported to live for a relatively short period of time,
and rarely exceeds seventy-five years of age.
It usually has a short trunk, and attains a height of
40 to 70 feet (12 to 21 m) and a diameter of
12 to 24 inches (30 to 60 cm).
Sapwood Color
The thin sapwood is described as white to light grayish brown, usually about one inch wide.
Heartwood Color
The heartwood is light brown, often with dark brown streaks or red tones.
It has also been described as light chestnut-brown,
medium-brown to dark brown, or warm buttery tan.
Grain
The grain, which is usually straight, has also been described as satiny and leafy.
Some veneer flitches may exhibit small dark spots.
Texture
The wood has medium to coarse, but soft texture, which resembles that of Black walnut.
Luster
The wood has a satin-like luster.
Natural Durability
Butternut has little or no resistance to decay and is reported to be
susceptible to attack by the furniture beetle.
The wood is also reported to rate lower than Black walnut in decay resistance.
The growing tree is reported to be easily attacked by insects and fungus before maturity.
Cutting Resistance
Little resistance to cutting, but cutters should be kept sharp to avoid tearing the soft wood.
Planing
Butternut is reported to respond well to planing and other woodworking operations,
but it is soft and requires very sharp cutting edges to prevent tearing.
Carving
The material is described as excellent for carving.
Gluing
The wood glues very well.
Nailing
Nailing properties are rated as very good.
Screwing
The material is reported to respond very well to screwing.
Polishing
Polishing qualities are reported to be very good.
Staining
The wood stains very well.
Response to Hand Tools
The wood works very satisfactorily with hand tools.
Cutting tools must be kept sharp for maximum efficiency.
Comments
Butternut is reported to have been a favorite wood for church altars,
and carvers still enjoy using the wood.
It is currently used mainly for furniture.
The wood is weak in stiffness, and is also rated as moderately weak in
bending and edge-wise compression.
===================================
Numerical Data Source
USDA. 1987. Wood Handbook : Wood as an Engineering Material.
United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service,
Agriculture Handbook No. 72. Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.
Descriptive Data Source
Panshin, A.J. and C. deZeeuw. Textbook of Wood
Technology.
McGraw-Hill Series in Forest Resources.
McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.
Canadian Forestry Service. 1981.
Canadian Woods - Their Properties and Uses.
Third Edition. E.J. Mullins and T.S. McKnight, Editors.
Published by University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Canada.
Jackson, A. and D. Day.1991.
Good Wood Handbook - The Woodworker's Guide to Identifying, Selecting and Using the Right Wood.
Betterway Publications, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Boone, R.S., C.J. Kozlik, P.J. Bois, E.M. Wengert. 1988.
Dry Kiln Schedules for Commercial Hardwoods - Temperate and Tropical.
USDA, Forest Service, General Technical Report FPL-GTR-57,
Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.
USDA. 1988. Dry Kiln Operators Manual, Preliminary Copy.
Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.
McGraw-Hill Series in Forest Resources.
McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.
Canadian Forestry Service. 1981.
Canadian Woods - Their Properties and Uses.
Third Edition. E.J. Mullins and T.S. McKnight, Editors.
Published by University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Canada.
Jackson, A. and D. Day.1991.
Good Wood Handbook - The Woodworker's Guide to Identifying, Selecting and Using the Right Wood.
Betterway Publications, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Boone, R.S., C.J. Kozlik, P.J. Bois, E.M. Wengert. 1988.
Dry Kiln Schedules for Commercial Hardwoods - Temperate and Tropical.
USDA, Forest Service, General Technical Report FPL-GTR-57,
Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.
USDA. 1988. Dry Kiln Operators Manual, Preliminary Copy.
Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.
Kaiser, J.
Wood of the Month - Butternut: The White Walnut.
Wood & Wood Products, November 1990. Page 60.
Little, E.L. 1980.
The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees - Eastern Region.
Published by Arthur A. Knopf, New york.
Kline, M. 1978.
Juglans cinerea - Butternut.
In A Guide to Useful Woods of the World, Flynn Jr., J.H., Editor.
King Philip Publishing Co., Portland, Maine. 1994. Page 194.
WCMC. 1992.
Conservation Status Listing - Trees and Timbers of the World.
World Conservation Monitoring Center-Plants Programme,
Cambridge, CB3 ODL, United Kingdom.
White Ash
LightingFX
