Identifying oak wood can be done by looking at the type of grain and the color of the wood. Once you learn how to recognize these characteristics, oak wood can be easily identified.
Oak trees are deciduous trees that grow throughout in different countries. Their leaves turn bright red, yellow or orange in the fall. The bark is grayish-brown with thick ridges.
Oak trees are most easily identified by the shape of their acorns, which are large and rounded in the top third. These trees provide shelter and food for many types of wildlife.
Types of oak wood include red oak, white oak and black oak. It is easily identified by its unique growth pattern and its distinctive color pattern. White oak trees grow in the northern hemisphere, while red oaks are found in the southern hemisphere. Black oaks are usually found in cooler climates.
Examine the acorns. Acorns from different oak trees are shaped differently. In general, white oaks have acorns that are rounded at the top, while red oaks have acorns that have a pointy tip at the top.
Identify the tree’s leaves. The leaves of an oak tree can be up to 12 inches long with 5 to 13 pointed lobes on each side of a central vein. The color of oak leaves varies from tree to tree, ranging from green to yellow-green or gray-green in the summer and yellow, red or purple in the fall.
Color-wise, it might be helpful to know that ash trees have reddish buds and their bark is dark gray, while hickory leaves have 5-9 pointed lobes with saw-toothed edges.
Depending on the type of oak, you may find that it is straight grained or wavy. Some oaks are open-grained while others are tight. The color of the wood ranges from honey brown to red-brown and tends to darken with age. Oak is also very heavy when compared to other types of wood.
Oak wood has a beautiful grain pattern that adds character to projects that are made out of this type of wood. While many kinds of wood come from trees, not all woods are equal in value and quality. You can identify oak wood by examining its characteristics as well as comparing it to other types of woods such as maple and cherry. You can check nearest furniture retailer for more info.
You can identify oak by examining its grain pattern. Oak has a coarse appearance that includes wide growth rings. This type of grain is easy to see if you hold a piece up to the light. The more open the grain, the less valuable it is though it does have a unique look to it. Oak tends to have a more tight growth ring pattern than other types of trees.
