Is Radiata Pine Soft Or Hardwood

In the southern hemisphere where true pines are essentially absent it s the most commonly cultivated pine and is valued for its fast growth and utility both as a source of construction lumber as well as wood pulp in the paper industry.

Is radiata pine soft or hardwood.

The janka test measures the necessary force to embed a 44 diameter steel ball halfway into a piece of wood. Classifying wood as either a hardwood or softwood comes down to its physical structure and makeup and so it is overly simple to think of hardwoods as being hard and durable compared to soft and workable softwoods. Radiata is a versatile fast growing medium density softwood suitable for a wide range of uses. This happens to be generally true but there are exceptions such as in the cases of wood from yew trees a softwood that is relatively hard and wood from balsa trees a.

The wood from conifers is classified as softwood because with a few exceptions it s softer than the wood from deciduous trees which is classified as hardwood. The texture of radiata pine is fine but uneven and knots are common. Radiata pine is grown almost exclusively on plantations most notably in chile australia and new zealand. Pine trees are considered a softwood tree which means the wood is softer than hardwood varieties.

However there are plenty exceptions to that. Aromatic cedar yellow pine both qualify as medium density wood species on the janka scale. Poplar is a hardwood broadleaf tree radiata pine is a softwood needle leaf tree. Pine trees grow around the world not just in the u s.

Native to coastal california today radiata pine is grown almost exclusively on plantations most notably in chile australia and new zealand. Prices should be moderate for an imported lumber though most likely more expensive than domestic pines softwoods. It comes from a coniferous tree which is one that has needles instead of leaves and is green all year round in other words an evergreen. The timber is fairly soft and has a low density often with very wide annual growth rings.

Generally speaking softwoods tend to be softer than their hardwood counterparts. Pine is not a hardwood. One of the slowest growing trees is california redwood which takes about 80 years to reach market size.