Names like Brazilian cherry and bamboo hardwood floors play on heritage of American Hardwoods
Choosing American hardwoods means knowing with confidence
that the hardwood has been responsibly harvested and quality control
standards have been met. It also means that the resulting product, be it
flooring, furniture, cabinetry or millwork, will be beautiful, durable
and treasured for generations. However, today’s market offers many
synthetic products that may look like American hardwood on the surface,
but won’t provide the same attributes over time. Imitation is the
sincerest form of flattery, but don’t be fooled. Certain tropical and
temperate hardwoods, and even grasses, not native to the United States
are masquerading as traditional homegrown favorites and being marketed
with “new” names that play on the rich heritage of domestic hardwoods
like cherry, maple and oak. Here are some common examples:
Marketing Name | Is Not | Really Is |
---|---|---|
“Chilean cherry” | cherry | lenga |
“Brazilian cherry” | cherry | jatoba |
“Brazilian maple” | maple | pau marfin |
“Patagonian maple” | maple | pau marfin |
“Tasmanian oak” | oak | eucalyptus |
“Australian Heritage oak” | oak | eucalyptus |
“Malaysian oak” | oak | rubberwood |
“Rose River gum “ | gum | eucalyptus |
“Australian cypress” | cypress | pine |
Products made from tropical grasses like bamboo are also
being referenced as hardwood. However, bamboo is a grass grown typically
in tropical regions of the world and it is not carbon negative. To make
flooring, the grass is glued together under tremendous pressures of up
to 1,200 pounds per square inch. Glue content can range from three to 20
percent, and often contains urea formaldehyde, which is classified as a
probable human carcinogen. Manufacturers approximate it could last only
30 years. And because it is typically manufactured in Southeast Asia,
shipment to U.S. shores increases its carbon footprint, significantly.
To confirm the identity of a wood species, the U.S.
Department of Agriculture's Forest Service suggests checking the
species’ botanical name. The botanical name for a real oak tree, for
example, will contain the word "Quercus," which means "a fine tree" in
Latin.
The Species Guide
on this website also outlines botanical names, descriptions and lore
about major hardwood species found in the temperate forests of the
United States.