On May 9, 12:28 pm, "Michael Faurot"
wrote:
This question pertains to what's available from North American wood
dealers. This may well be a naive question, but why is it that
there doesn't seem to be much available in terms of other North
American trees such as Elm, Sycamore, Willow, Birch (not counting
plywood), Beech, etc.?

Or to phrase the question a different way, why is Cherry, Walnut, Oak,
Poplar, Maple, etc. what's predominately available?

--

Others have addressed some of the questions, mostly at a fairly
superficial level of "what is widely available is what sells" which
is, of course, true. Others have touched on the properties of some
particular species but the subject is almost limitless, far more
complex than addressed. If you're really interested in the "why's" of
why some woods are used for various things and not others the two
sources to start with are R Bruce Hoadley's "Understanding Wood".

http://woodworking.about.com/od/reco...rstandWood.htm

and 'Characteristics and Availability of Commercially Important Woods'
from US Forest Products Laboratory, the font of all knowledge on
things woody --

http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fp...tr113/ch01.pdf