Western Softwoods

Western Timberlands

The western United States is a vast wonderland of sweeping grasslands, craggy mountains, coastal temperate rainforests, inland forests, high desert plateaus, raging white waters, pristine lakes and enormous rivers.

It is also home to some of the most abundant and beloved public, private, industrial and non-industrial timberlands in the world. Millions of acres are set aside in perpetuity, permanently protected from commercial use. 

On private and public lands where timber production is among the shared values assigned to a forested area, harvesting is governed by county, state and federal U.S. environmental and land management laws. In addition, the timber basket states of Oregon, Washington, California and Idaho are governed by some of the toughest State Forest Practices Acts and Best Management Practices (laws), with the highest compliance levels, of any timber growing region on the planet.

These laws protect habitat for threatened and endangered species, watersheds, soils, eco-system health and diversity, and require reforestation in site-specific species within specified periods of time (within one year in Oregon and within three years in the other states).

More than 21 commercially important softwood species are native to the West. Among others, these include: Douglas fir (Oregon Pine) and Western Larch, Western Hemlock which is often marketed along with several of the true firs (Abies species) as Hem-Fir, Ponderosa and Lodgepole pines, Sugar pine, Idaho (or Western) White pine, four species of cedar (Incense, Western Red, Port Orford, and Alaskan Yellow), California redwood, and Engelmann and Sitka spruces. Only a few are shown in this brochure. 

Timber Grades

Western species are manufactured into hundreds of timber products marketed according to specifically defined timber grades. The rules for these grades have evolved over nearly a century for convenience in referencing specific products and to provide buyers, sellers, 
and specifiers with a dependable measure for determining timber quality. Species and grades may be grouped, according to intended end uses, into several broad categories:

• Structural timber is graded for its load-bearing and load-carrying capacity in framing and construction applications. Species groupings simplify design. Please refer to Structural Timber. 

• Appearance timber is graded for its visual characteristics, with the highest grades reserved for timber that is virtually clear, free of characteristics and defects. Species are often marketed individually or in specific combinations. Please refer to Timber Graded for Appearance. 

• Factory and Shop timber is graded for its suitability to be re-cut and further manufactured into doors, windows, furniture and other products. Criteria for these grades are determined by the percentage of clear “cuttings” recoverable from the graded piece. Please refer to Timber for Remanufacturing.

• California redwood grades are specific to the naturally durable species, Sequoia sempervirens, a commercially grown species of redwood native to northern California and southern Oregon. Redwood timber grades are based on appearance and durability. Please refer to California Redwood. 

• Special Export grades are available. Many manufacturers provide timber products in the grades and sizes determined by the requirements of individual destination countries. All of the grades shown in this publication are widely traded in the international marketplace. Other export grades are available through buyer-seller agreements. 

In the early days of wood products, independent grading agencies developed grades for the species in their regions. As modern construction practices and building codes began to require greater standardization in all building materials, structural timber products were standardized for grade and size under the National Grading Rule for Dimension Lumber and grouped into species combinations in the early 1970s. However, the non-structural timber products in specialty and appearance-grade products remain characterized by a variety of regionally oriented, species-specific grades maintained by accredited grading agencies.