The second half of this year saw us run a massive special on Blackwood timber. If you were lucky enough to grab the special while it was going, then you know why we’re dedicating this month’s blog to learning more about this beautiful wood.
Name:
Acacia melanoxylon is known as Australian Blackwood, and is more commonly called Blackwood.
Country of Origin:
As its name suggest, Blackwood is native to eastern Australia, but it does grow prolifically in South Africa.
Country Currently Imported From:
We get our Blackwood locally in South Africa, it is an invasive wattle species.
Knots:
The defining characteristic of this wood type is the knots. Mostly all the knots being live, so once this wood is finely sanded and oiled it really gives this wood amazing life and a remarkable story to tell in each and every piece made.
Growth Rings:
These are not clearly defined. However, there is a marked difference between the heart and sap wood. The heartwood being dark brown to caramel in colour and the sap wood being pale/straw in colour.
Colour:
As described in the growth rings above, the range of Blackwood’s colours in the brown, gold, straw, yellow, caramel spectrum is vast – making this a wood that is wonderful to work with. It is ALWAYS different, and this is the mass appeal about this wood in furniture. It’s a clean look, but it’s a descriptive wood.
Indoor or outdoor:
We advise that this wood be mainly used indoors. That said, we do supply a certain amount for outdoor use with a lower guarantee period. It is moderately durable for outdoor use.
All of us at Homewood absolutely love this wood because of the story the knots have to tell, as well as the vast colour variation you can get from just one tree. Our favourite Blackwood piece would have to be the new Duzu dining table. Blackwood is not named after the colouring of the wood, but rather the colour it turns your hands when working with it. This is caused by the high tannin content in the wood. And when this reacts with oxygen in the air it turns black. This also means the wood over time will darken naturally and eventually become a dark chocolate brown. As we said, it’s a descriptive wood that will speak to you for years to come.
