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Boring Carving Common Names Common Uses Countries of Distribution Cutting Resistance Distribution Overview Drying Defects Ease of Drying Environmental Profile Gluing Grain Heartwood Color Kiln Schedules Luster Mortising Moulding Movement in Service Nailing Natural Durability Numerical Data Odor Planing Polishing Product Sources References Regions of Distribution Resistance to Impregnation Response to Hand Tools Routing & Recessing Sanding Sapwood Color Scientific Name Screwing Staining Steam Bending Strength Properties Texture Trade Name Tree Size Turning		Scientific Name Magnolia acuminata Trade Name Cucumbertree Family Name Common Names Cucumber magnolia, Cucumbertree, Magnolia, Mountain magnolia, Yellow cucumbertree, Yellow flower magnolia Regions of Distribution North America Countries of Distribution  [VIEW MAP] Canada, United States Common Uses Baskets, Blinds, Boxes and crates, Building materials, Carvings, Casks, Chairs, Chests, Concealed parts (Furniture), Desks, Dining-room furniture, Dowell pins, Dowells, Drawer sides, Fine furniture, Fixtures, Floor lamps, Food containers, Furniture , Furniture components, Furniture squares or stock, Hatracks, Interior construction, Interior trim, Kitchen cabinets, Living-room suites, Millwork, Moldings, Office furniture, Packing cases, Pulp/Paper products, Pulpwood, Radio - stereo - TV cabinets, Rustic furniture, Shutters, Stools, Tables , Trimming, Utility furniture, Wainscotting, Wardrobes Environmental Profile Vulnerable Abundant/Secure Widespread Rather secure globally Rather rare at the periphery of its range Rare in parts of its natural range (population is at risk) Data source is Nature Conservancy Abundant The species is Endangered within its natural growth range in the state of Indiana, and is Vulnerable, possibly Endangered in Oklahoma Distribution Overview In the U.S., in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. It thrives in moist upland oak-hickory forests. In the Ouachitas, it is usually found only on the upper north slopes of the highest mountains. Heartwood Color Brown Black The heartwood is light greenish gray in color, sometimes streaked with brown Sapwood Color Brown Yellow White Grey Whitish Grain Even Straight Straight Texture Fine Medium Luster High Natural Durability Magnolia has little or no resistance to attack by decay causing arganisms and wood destroying insects. Odor No specific smell or taste Kiln Schedules 10 - D4 (4/4); T8 - D3 (8/4) U Drying Defects Checking Distortion Ease of Drying Rapidly Reconditioning Treatement Little degrade Moderate kiln schedules are recommended Easy Tree Size Tree height is 20-30 m Trunk diameter is 100-150 cm The tree usually develops a straight bole and measures about 60 to 80 feet (18 to 24 m) in height, with a trunk diameter of about 24 inches (60 cm). Magnolia is a very popular ornamental tree because of its beautiful flowers and leaves Product Sources Magnolia is not a plentiful species, and bes often marketed in mixed batches with Tuliptree (Liriodendron tulipifera) as Yellow poplar. Since the bulk of the mixture be Tuliptree, it is often difficult to know whether the material being used is actually Magnolia. Yellow poplar be readily available and moderately priced, but increasing demand is likely to affect the quality of the material as time goes on. Boring Fairly easy to very easy Fair to good results Easy Number of pieces out of one hundred yielding good to excellent boring results = 71 Carving Carving characteristics are rated as good and the wood of Magnolia is very popular as a craftwood Cutting Resistance Easy to saw Gluing Fairly good gluing properties Mortising Fairly Easy to Very Easy Fair to Good Results Responds poorly to mortising Number out of one hundred yielding fair to excellent results in mortising = 32 Moulding Fair to Good Results Moulding properties are poor Percent of moulded pieces with good to excellent results = 27 Movement in Service Excellent Stability - Small Movement Fair to Good Stability - Medium Movement The wood has moderate dimensional stability adfter seasoning, but it is slightly less stable than Tuliptree Nailing Pre-boring recommended Percent of nailed pieces free from complete splits = 73 Planing Fairly Easy to Very Easy Fair to Good Results Magnolia is about 10 percent heavier than Tuliptree, and the two species are reported to respond very well and similarly to most woodworking operations. (Percent of planed Magnolia pieces without any machining defects = 65) Resistance to Impregnation Permeable heartwood Permeable sapwood Response to Hand Tools Responds Readily Routing & Recessing Fairly Easy to Very Easy Sanding Fairly Easy to Very Easy Difficult to sand (expect < 50 out of 100 good to excellent results) Percent of sanded pieces yielding good to excellent results = 37 Screwing Pre-Boring is recommended. (Number of screwed pieces out of one hundred free from complete splits = 76) Turning Fair to Good Results The wood is slightly superior in strength and finer in texture than Tuliptree, which makes it a better turnery wood. Large volumetric shrinkage is reported to discourage its use in larger projects such as, tables and case goods. (Number of pieces out of one hundred yielding fair to excellent results in turning = 79) Steam Bending Good Percent of unbroken pieces = 85 Polishing Surface Preparation Very Good to Excellent Results Fair to Good Results Staining Magnolia and Tuliptree are reported to respond very well to finishes, even light bodied finishes, to yield glass-smooth surfaces Strength Properties Hardness (side grain) = soft Dented and marred easily Compression strength (parallel to grain) = medium Bending strength in the air-dry condition (about 12 percent moisture content) is high - comparable to Teak Numerical Data Item Green Dry English Bending Strength 7252 12054 psi Crushing Strength 323 559 psi Hardness 686 lbs Impact Strength 29 34 inches Maximum Crushing Strength 3077 6184 psi Shearing Strength 1313 psi Stiffness 1529 1784 1000 psi Work to Maximum Load 10 12 inch-lbs/in3 Specific Gravity 0.34 0.39 Radial Shrinkage 5 % Tangential Shrinkage 9 % Volumetric Shrinkage 13 % Item Green Dry Metric Bending Strength 509 847 kg/cm2 Crushing Strength 22 39 kg/cm2 Hardness 311 kg Impact Strength 73 86 cm Maximum Crushing Strength 216 434 kg/cm2 Shearing Strength 92 kg/cm2 Stiffness 107 125 1000 kg/cm2 Work to Maximum Load 0.70 0.84 cm-kg/cm3 Specific Gravity 0.34 0.39 Radial Shrinkage 5 % Tangential Shrinkage 9 % References Arno, J. 1991. Magnolia acuminata - Cucumbertree. In A Guide to Useful Woods of the World. Flynn Jr., J.H., Editor. King Philip Publishing Co., Portland, Maine. 1994. Page 216-217. Boone, R.S., C.J. Kozlik, P.J. Bois and E.M. Wengert. 1988. Dry Kiln Schedules for Commercial Woods: Temperate and Tropical. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, General Technical Report FPL-GTR-57, Madison, Wisconsin. Kaiser, J. Wood of the Month: Magnolia - Lovely Magnolias are Older than Man. Wood & Wood Products, July 1987, Page 68. Little, E.L. 1980. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees - Eastern Region. Published by Arthur A. Knopf. Panshin, A.J. and C. deZeeuw. 1980. Textbook of Wood Technology, 4th Edition. McGraw-Hill Series in Forest Resources. McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York. USDA. 1987. Wood Handbook : Wood as an Engineering Material. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Agriculture Handbook No. 72. Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin. USDA. 1988. Dry Kiln Operators Manual, Preliminary Copy. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin. WCMC. 1992. Conservation Status Listing - Trees and Timbers of the World. World Conservation Monitoring Center-Plants Programme, Cambridge, CB3 ODL, United Kingdom.