In residential home construction, the framing is usually done with softwood lumber, which helps keep costs lower. Conifers, or evergreen trees, are the softwood species. They grow much faster than most hardwood trees, which are botanically known as deciduous trees. This makes the wood less expensive as the adult trees are more plentiful. They can be grown relatively quickly on tree farms. Hardwood Lumber in South Salem CT is used for other types of projects in which the characteristics of this wood are important.
Reproductive Differences
Botanically, the main focus of these two types of trees is how they reproduce. Deciduous trees produce seeds of various types inside a protective covering, such as a fruit or nut. For example, maple seeds are technically fruits and acorns are nuts. Apples and peaches are more obvious types of fruits containing tree seeds.
In contrast, conifers produce seeds inside a cone. Those seeds later are freed from the cone and can be blown quite a distance away. People are generally very familiar with pine cones, but other softwoods like spruce, juniper and fir produce cones as well.
Density and Slow Growth
Hardwood Lumber in South Salem CT is usually more dense and sturdier than that made from softwood because of the slow growth of the trees. This is not always the case, however. Not all projects require the density of most hardwoods. Even though it would seem that home framing would need this characteristic, the number of boards in the frame that are providing support makes that unnecessary.
Why Hardwood Is So Appealing
Hardwood boards from a provider such as Company are commonly used to build cabinetry and furniture. Examples of some of the more popular choices include oak, maple, walnut, ash, hickory and beech. Commercial and amateur woodworkers appreciate the qualities of this material for their range of projects.
A main appealing characteristic of the hardwoods is the variation in colors, grain patterns and textures that are substantially more remarkable than that of softwoods. This makes cabinetry, furniture and wood flooring particularly lovely. People tend to prefer hardwood for these home features.