Iowa Tree Identification Summer Program 2018
On Sunday of each week for the next several weeks we are going to bring you through some of the trees that we have grown up with. We are going to teach how to identify, value, and finish the different tree families of hardwoods as well as the most common species within the tree families. If you find that you enjoy this newsletter and want it to continue please share, contact and check out our showroom in Woodward, Ia.
Iowa is known for it’s crops, plains and prairies but Iowa also has a landscape made up of 6% trees. 90% these trees are privately owned by over 130,000 people and are located in townships, field/farm lines, un-plantable hills and along the river valleys that cut through the Iowa landscape. They are vital to the ecosystem and live long lives. But when a land owner or tree service decides a tree needs to come down it is often met with taking these unique resources and heating a field with a regular bon fire. We, along with others, have come to take the risk of dulling our blades and damaging our equipment to keep the hardwoods out of the burn piles and making them available to the people that will pull the beauty back out of them. If you are a woodworker, carpenter, or enthusiast you will want to get to know what we have.
During the next couple of months we will go over the sixteen tree families that make up Iowa’s Hardwoods.
- Ash
- Hackberry
- Aspen
- Basswood
- Hickory
- Black locust
- Birch
- Maple
- Black Walnut
- Cottonwood
- Oak
- Butternut
- Elm
- Sycamore
- Cherry
- Honey Locust
Of these sixteen we will start with the most commonly that are currently most available at IowaHardwoodslabs.com.
Walnut
Walnut has a warm golden brown color with darker streaks that flow through it’s grain. It is highly desired for fine furniture, carving and veneer. There are 21 species in the walnut family. Of the most common in Iowa is the The American Black Walnut.
We will talk about it next week.
Oak
Oak has a prominent and sturdy grain. It is abundant in Iowa and the surrounding Midwest. There are two main categories, White Oak and Red Oak.
We will take three weeks to go over these trees.
Maple
Maple is dense and has bold colors. It is lightly colored in the sap wood and dark in the in the heart. There are two major categories of Maples, hard and soft.
We will be covering these trees through the month of July.
We hope you will find this Newsletter to be informative. If you have not yet please subscribe, and if you have like it please find us at @iowahardwoodslabs on Facebook like us and comment with a #IowaHardwoodSlabsNewsletter.
