Walnut Lumber Prized Worldwide

Walnut lumber Is valued for dark, burled graining. It is a beautiful and highly prized building material. Different varieties of walnut are found around the world. Black walnut is native to North America and is distinctive with its tight grain in beautiful burled patterns and naturally dark, rich color. English walnut was transported to the islands of the United Kingdom when the Romans conquered the country, transplanting the trees from Persia. The popularity of various wood species wax and wane over the years, but one wood that has always held its value is walnut lumber.

A national market exists for the best veneer quality walnut lumber. Veneer logs are worth thousands of dollars per thousand feet (MBF) in the United States. In recent years, nearly three quarters of all walnut lumber harvested is shipped to Germany, South Korea and Japan. In those markets this lumber may be valued at nearly double that paid for white oak, the next most popular furniture wood.

Walnut Sought For Many Uses

Walnut lumber is used for veneers and for building high quality furniture, cabinets, gunstocks, musical instruments, lamp bases, clock cabinets and any number of other woodworking projects requiring a fine-grained dark colored hardwood. The lumber is one of exceptional beauty and durability. Walnut lumber is copied extensively as well. Walnut stain and coloring is applied to solid woods and engineered woods to simulate the natural beauty of walnut.

Walnut lumber will only increase in value as time goes on because the number of walnut trees is diminishing. The demand is strong for these trees, with harvest outpacing re-growth. Further complicating the situation is changing environmental and agricultural practices that have reduced the number of native walnut groves. Few replacement walnut plantations have been planted because the trees are slow growing and because of diseases and other problems associated with the trees that make investments in walnut plantations very risky.

Walnut lumber is native to the United States and Canada, but is used all around the world. It is used as a specialty lumber and not as a construction or dimension lumber such as pine, fir and oak. It is not normally available through lumberyards and home improvement centres. It can be special ordered. Walnut wood is available on numerous websites and pieces from small strips to entire trees can be shipped anywhere in the world.

Walnut lumber has exceptional strength because of its tight, dense grain. It has stunning beauty with its rich, warm reddish brown wood and darkly coloured heartwood. These qualities make walnut furniture and walnut specialty items treasured keepsakes that often turn into family heirlooms. There is great aesthetic as well as monetary value associated with walnut lumber.