What is the Difference Between a Softwood and a Hardwood?
Different types of construction projects call for different kinds of timber, and many people are familiar with the concepts of hardwood and softwood. However, few people know why woods are split into these two categories, and make the assumption that hardwoods are hard, while softwood is soft. This distinction is incorrect: balsa wood, for example, is classified as a hardwood despite the fact that it is very soft and light. Softwood and hardwood are actually distinguished botanically, not by their end use or appearance. In general, hardwood comes from a deciduous tree which loses its leaves annually, and softwood comes from a conifer, which usually remains evergreen. Hardwoods tend to be slower growing, and are therefore usually more dense, but not always. Softwood usually grows in huge tracts of trees which may spread for miles, while hardwoods tend to be found mixed with a variety of other species. Softwood comes from a type of tree known as a gymnosperm. Gymnosperms reproduce by for
” First of all, it has absolutely nothing to do with the comparative hardness of the two. Some hardwoods are softer than softwoods, and vice versa. In fact boxwood and aspen are two very soft hardwoods, while fir and longleaf line are very hard softwoods. Try saying that ten times really fast! Both hardwoods and softwoods are woody vascular plants but the characteristics of the tree itself, not the wood that is contained therein are used to make the differentiation. The difference between softwoods and hardwoods has to do with their relative biology of reproduction and some other distinctive physical attributes. Softwoods are gymnosperms; the term gymnosperm is Latin for naked seeds. This refers to the fact that their seeds are not enclosed in an ovary. They are also known as conifers or evergreens and are cone-bearing. They typically have waxy, needle-like leaves that stay on the tree year round, although there are exceptions to this such as the larch and cypress. The lumber produced
