So right johnp, until I made my TMB (with timber sent to me from the USA) the only poplar I had experienced was that 'orrible cotton wool like timber obtained from them gurt long thin trees you see so many of in France , lol. There has been an increase in the use of t'other stuff this last twenty or so years, see a lot of it used for 'fancy' flooring these days ?
John
If you posted a picture of the live tree and asked here what kind of tree is this? 99. 99999999999999999999999999999 % of the folks would have answered 'Poplar'. So I said Poplar. Didn't mean to confuse anyone or put anyone off.
Thanks Ken, they sound like grand trees, we grow them over here as ornamentals but I've never seen anything that size. Maybe in a couple hundred years time.
The colouration was mainly in the form of green or brown streaks as I remember it, Spalting we tend to think of over here as thin black lines in the wood, very common in Sycamore(a type of maple in Europe and not the same as American sycamore)
john
johnp -- I knew my forestry education would come in handy some day...
The wood pictured is one of over a dozen species of genus Populus common to North America, infected by fungus during the dying process - aka 'spalted'.
There are about 25 species of poplar/cottonwood in the genus Populus - in several categories : White and Black Poplars, eastern & western Poplars, Aspens, Balsam Poplars, Bigleaf Poplars, etc.
Liriodendron tulipifera has a name that for some reason has tickled my fancy since I learned it over 40 years ago. Common names include Tulip Tree, Tulip Poplar, Whitewood, Fiddlewood, and Yellow Poplar. It is NOT a poplar, but rather a unique member of the Magnoliaceae family. Like the Magnolias they produce large pinkish-white flowers in the spring. They are one of the largest North American trees, being known up to 190 ft tall and over 10 ft in diameter. Thirty years ago in Ohio I personally surveyed a 20 acre section of bottom land that had only 46 trees, each at least 150 ft tall and 8 ft in diameter with clear trunks at least 70 feet before the first branch. Absolutely magnificent trees!
The tree is called "tulip" because, of course, of the distinctive shape of the leaf, which appears something like a tulip in profile, as does the Liriodendron flower itself:
Would anyone care to explain exactly what this tree is for the benefit of us Europeans.
As far as I can make out this is not a poplar at all but what we call the Tulip Tree(Lirodendron). In the timber trade it's known as Magnolia.
It was imported into the UK in large amounts after the war when native spieces were in short supply and used as a replacement for 'Whitewood'.
Whitewood was the generic name for poplars, cottonwoods and aspen and used for carcass work. It machines easilly and used for small turned items like doorknobs, broom heads, chair legs and mouldings in general, and of course, matchsticks. So I guess this is what confuses us in Europe.
I can testify to the odd colourings in this wood, I've cut literally hundreds of miles of this stuff when I was a picture framer. And as Sam says, you can trick it up to look like almost anything :_
john
Used to read a lot. Read somewhere some sage words from an old cabinet maker ... "Poplar? Love poplar. I can stain it and call it anything I want."
I have two all poplar builds and I like both. I have another with poplar back and sides (Sitka spruce top). The sides have almost black streaking through them and the wood is absolutely beautiful.
Hi, all.
I've been warming up to poplar (so to speak) in the past few months. I know it has some bad qualities and is considered a junk or secondary wood by cabinetmakers, but it can make a FINE sounding dulcimer!
Ask Robin Clark, Ken Hulme, Elaine King, Kevin Messenger or others on this site. I was surprised myself when I first heard the sound of the firstdulcimer I made from poplar. And the color variations are interesting.
Agree with you Bob. There's usually a far greater percentage of 'plain' grained wood in most any species. Guess that's why I love highly figured wood so much. Climate, elevation, minerals, the availability and amount of moisture and even the occurrence of wildfire and other dramatic factors can all change, enhance, distress and affect the overall appearance of wood. It can also ruin it. Wind shaken and some lightning stricken trees are good for little other than toothpicks. Emerald Ash borers have killed my stand of ash (some in the 3 foot diameter class).
Poplar does take stain well and is both strong and durable if maintained and kept dry. I think the jury is still out as to whether it's the softest of the hardwoods or hardest of the softwoods.
Heck I even made a couple of dulcimers from pine (from George Beckwith here on the site), one teardrop, one hourglass. I like both of them.
Dear Bob;
Keep watching that poplar. There can be spectacular color in poplar. I've seen brilliant greens, purples, browns and totally black woodgrain in poplar ... often in the same small chunk. It's an excellent choice for soundboard material, especially for a nice TMB.
Sam
Ken I dried this slab didn't get any end check but the wood was very soft. I just don't think I could have made it structurally sound. Sanded smooth and a bit of finish, I think it would have been very nice ... just wish I'd gotten to it a few months sooner.
Dana ... uh ... yep ... had a moment a few years back. Wish I could remember it ..... sigh ...... :(
Dang! What about if you stabilized it with a good slather of urethane or epoxy, sliced it in half, urethaned again and then started hand planing?
Now Sam you know I think a lot of that brain of yours. It has it's moments!
well ......there will be another Sam
Hauled a downed Poplar off the hill a while back. It's not much good for stove wood. It burns up too fast and leaves too much ash to be carried out, but I wasn't about to let it go to waste. While sawing it up I had a thought (yes Dana ... it DOES happen :). I decided to split a length long enough for a soundboard and see what was in there.
The log split true and the spalting is beautiful ... but the wood was too far gone. Much of it was soft (doty). The slab shown split out nicely. It's about 1/2 inch thick and could have been hand planed down very well. Shame it's past prime. 
