[mhein68]

What is the diffence between just cherry and black cherry? After reading Christian Becksvoort;'s book he says uses black cherry.. I am wanting to see what it looks like myself... Any place that sells or free sample... Most places want you to buy a bundle.. I'm just wanting a maybe 6x6 or somthing around that size... Thanks

 

[wildwoodbybrianjohns]

There are two types of cherry wood - Black Cherry (USA), and Sweet Cherry(Europe). The Cherry that is harvested for lumber is not the same as those which produce cherries we eat. Some others are called cherry but arent actually in the same genus.

 

[Lazyman]

There are several species of cherries but when people say cherry in the US, they usually mean Black Cherry (Prunus serotina) which is native to the US. The wood from cherry orchards such as sweet cherries (P. avium) is pretty too but is not widely used for wood working in the US, in part because they are shaped to make harvesting easier so are not going to yield much lumber. BTW, Black Cherries are edible but are usually pretty bitter.

 

[MadMark]

I use "brazillian cherry" aka jatoba. Over time it goes burgendy (sp?). Hard as hell with few knots. Machines beautifully with carbide cutters.

 

[ibewjon]

The wild cherry trees growing near me in northern Illinois have small, dark fruit. They are called choke cherry for a reason. If someone has plenty of spare time, the fruit is used for wine, and possibly jelly. It is rarely over 1/4" diameter. But the wood is great.

 

[Oregon Woodworker]

Bitter cherry, aka Oregon cherry (Prunus emarginata) is a native wild cherry on the west coast. I do not know if it is considered to be a black cherry. We have groves of it on our property. Last December a dozen or more blew down during a windstorm. I will mill the larger logs with my Alaska sawmill and the smaller parts will become firewood.

Bitter cherry is beautiful for woodworking. I have used it for various woodworking projects such as picture frames and the base wood for inlaid coat/tack racks.