New Orleans Native Trees

You can come cut down the two magnolias in front of my house. Doggone leaves are everywhere!

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

I have never used Magnolia as lumber; only for turning bowls…. There is a lot of cypress and oak in those parts, that may be something to consider.

-- Chris

Yeah, I hear the leaves are like leather and can wreak havoc on a lawn.

I was thinking about cypress too. I live in VA so oak is a bit too common around here. I want something that feels unique to the place I visited. I’m going to build a Hawaiian project first, but next would be Louisiana. After that, I’d like to do a Vegas project, but I’ll be honest, I don’t think there is much native lumber out there.

If I were to do a project on New Orleans native wood I would use: LIVE OAK.

Cypress would be an ideal choice. It is very a much a native of south Louisiana, and was used extensively in home and furniture building in this area up through the early to mid 20th century. It has made a comeback in popularity for cabinetry in recent years. As a bonus, it is great for outdoor use, too.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Hawaiian? Time for some KOA!!!

I live in the deep south and have never seen Live Oak used as lumber before; The grain is so twisted together its not even funny…

-- Chris

Yeah, I wasthinking of koa for the hawaii project, but that is a bit pricey. It may be worth it since it won’t be very large though. I’m also seriosuly considering some macadamian nut in the future and may ask a fellow lumberjock for some help picking out a nice piece for me since I can’t see it in person. I’m slow to complete projects though, so we’ll see.

when i saw the live oak suggestion, i looked it up. it is indeed native, but i read the same thing. not really meant for furniture building.

i also am considering the cypress choice, but again, am having trouble finding much online. i think both of these woods return a lot of ornamental tree images or flooring/decking images.

Here is a link to a local dealer:

http://www.jimmys-cypress.com/index.html

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Thanks Charlie,
This is definitely an option. Their prices don’t look too bad either. I probably need about 6 board feet, so I may just give them a call and see if they’d deal with me.

If anyone has any more suggestions on where I might find magnolia though, I’d still love to hear about it!

http://www.diadot.com/wood/magnolia.htm
http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/magnolia.htm

You’re going to have to find a small sawmill operator in your area. I’m sure they cut it often. Some of them are even known to tackle live oak.

-- Wonderful new things are coming! - God

well, I’m not from down there. I’m just trying to pick up some of those species to build something to house a few souvenirs from a trip.