Pistacia vera of the family Anacardiaceae, the cashew family
This is a small tree, primarily a producer of nuts and is normally only available in small sizes for turning, not as lumber. The cracks in the cutoff pieces that I show as my own samples illustrate how difficult this would can be to dry properly (no attempt was make on these, as they ARE cutoffs, but still, you see what I mean)
my samples:
The pics here of my own samples are all pics of four samples that were provided by
Kathy marshall, whom I thank for these and other contributions to the site
Just as an interesting side note, these pieces were sent from Arizona and after only 2 days in my relatively humid house, the cracks in all of the pieces had expanded noticibly.
both faces of sample piece #1
sample #1 --- the end grain when (1) the sample piece had not yet been sanded and still had an orange patina, and then (2) both ends after I had sanded it down, and then (3) one end with the piece moistened for the pic
end grain closeups of sample #1
face grain closeups of sample #1
side grain closeups of sample #1
both faces of sample #2
sample #2 --- the end grain when the sample piece had not yet been sanded and still had a dark patina, and then both ends after I had sanded it down.
end grain closeups of sample #2
face grain closeups of sample #2
side grain closeup of sample #2
sample #3 (1) as I got it and then (2) after I had squared it up and sanded it and then (3) the sanded piece moistened for the pic. Note that since this is a trunk cross section, all of the pics are end grain shots
both ends of sample #3
end grain closeups of sample #3
sample #4 --- the raw piece and then both faces after I had sanded it down.
end grain shots of sample #4
end grain closeups of sample #4
face grain closeups of sample #4
face grain closeup covering 2.5" of width in sample #4
side grain closeups of samples #4
web pics:
log cross sections
cant
log and cross section of it
split logs showing graft lines
both sides and two closeups of a plank.
I may just be easily confused, but I can't for the life of me figure out how it is that what appears to be sapwood (the light tan area) seems to suddenly appear in the bole of the tree as opposed to the outer rim as would normally be the case. [LATER]: AHA ! It has been explained to me: this and other similar weirdly sudden changes in the grain structure of pistachio pieces occurs because this is a favorite tree for grafting and it is the point where the graft and the older wood mate up that shows what would otherwise be unexplainable grain changes. My thanks to Ira Matheny for that illimination.
planks all from the same vendor
planks
turning stock
pen blanks
pen blanks that have been oiled and waxed and that are from a vendor whose pics tend to make most woods look purple regardless of what color the wood actually is.
a turning block and a closeup of it, showing how grafting can cause sudden and strange changes to the grain pattern of the wood.
freshly cut slabs ... pics provided by Ira Matheny whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site. The upper slab in the first pic is the bookmatch of the slab in the 2nd pic. The last pic shows a very strong graft line. Some of these show very clearly how the demarcation line of heartwood from sapwood can suddenly go radial instead of the normal longitudinal.
slabs
bowl blanks
bowl
a vase and the bottom of a bowl, both by Kathy Marshall
