Softwood trees, also called conifers, are classified as gymnosperms. In other words, they have naked seeds that are not encased in an ovary. They're generally softer than hardwood trees, though the Douglas fir is harder than most hardwoods and the balsa hardwood is softer than most softwoods. The key difference is that softwoods do not have the vessel elements for carrying water that hardwoods have. Instead, softwoods transport water via their longitudinal wood fibers (tracheids).

Softwoods are generally easier to work with and are thus the most commonly used wood types for construction and for making furniture, mouldings, doors and so on. They're also used in making paper and medium density fiberboard (MDF). Whatever portion of the softwood industry you are involved in, you need softwood education and training to be successful and competitive. Use the following as a guide.

1. Educate yourself on the different types of softwood trees and their growing characteristics.

2. Understand the softwood grading system to properly select the right softwood for the job.

3. Optimize business decisions by knowing the domestic and international trends of the softwood market.

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Learn the types of softwood and how to differentiate them from hardwood

If you want to grow softwood trees, you need to know which types of trees are softwood. Common types include yew, redwood, cypress, hemlock, fir, larch, Douglas fir, cedar, spruce and pine. Pines are among the most commercially important of the milling softwood trees due to their wide use in construction and furniture making, including white softwood of the eastern white pine.

I recommend: About provides an article that teaches how to identify common North American Conifers, i.e. softwood trees. Fast Growing Trees Nursery provides a website where you can determine what growing zone you are in and learn all the characteristics, growing requirements and instructions of each tree. It includes a wide variety of tree types, including Evergreen trees, which are softwood trees.

Understand how to grade softwood lumber

Softwood is categorized on a multi-tier grading system according to appearance, ability to withstand stresses, suitability for other construction uses and suitability for other non-construction uses. Familiarize yourself with the various softwood lumber grades in order to strike the right balance between appearance, strength and other characteristics for a given application.

I recommend: WoodBin has a web page that gives a thorough breakdown of the various grades of softwood so that the reader can select the optimal grade of softwood for a given job. The Softwood Export Council also has an excellent web page that will help you, when buying softwood, to sort out all the various softwood grades and relate them to the applications for which they are each most suited. The University of Missouri Extension's site does this as well and additionally provides you with a list of the common grade stamps and insight regarding water content, species groups, etc.

Obtain an education in the marketing and international trade side of the softwood industry

If you are either a softwood exporter or one of the many softwood producers, you will want to keep abreast of the market shifts at home and abroad. By reviewing online softwood market research publications regularly you will have a better grasp of when to increase or decrease production and where to focus your advertising dollars.

I recommend: Global Wood provides extensive coverage of industry news and market trend analyses in the lumber and wood products industry, including domestic and international markets. The Center for International Trade in Forest Products provides research assistantships to graduate students in forestry to work collaboratively with faculty in projects involving marketing, forestry and international trade of forest products.

Softwood comes from needle-bearing trees like fir, pine, cypress and cedar. The name refers to the cellular structure of the wood rather than its strength—many softwood trees make a harder surface than hardwood. While the construction industry uses the majority of the types of softwood, other industries also work with softwood.

You can buy timbers rough, meaning unsurfaced, or dressed which means a lumber company smoothed at least one face, or side. Smaller mills that don't have planers for surfacing produce rough timbers. You can use these when your building components don't need to be uniform. Since softwood trees vary even in the same species, softwood producers indicate how strong softwood timbers are by assigning softwood lumber grades.

1. Find out which softwood producers sell to clients in your type of business.

2. Save money on softwood lumber with rough timbers when uniformity isn't an issue.

3. Consider buying softwood from a softwood exporter.

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Use softwood information to find a supplier for your industry

Some softwood producers sell only to clients in particular types of businesses such as industrial builders or homebuilders. Other softwood companies focus on woodworkers. Look for softwood sold to customers in your field to find what you need.

I recommend: Universal Forest Products supplies softwood for industries such as do-it-yourself retail home stores, manufactured housing, site-built construction and more. Its user-friendly interface lets you put in information about what you're looking for. EasyCreek Lumber specializes in softwoods for cabinets, flooring, moldings, furniture, tabletops, stair treads, boats, musical instruments and other woodworking needs.

Save money when buying softwood

If you're building a structure that doesn't require every that component be planed, consider using a sawmill that will sell you sawn softwood which generally costs less than dressed, or surfaced, wood.

I recommend: Troymill Wood Products sells softwood at wholesale prices. Jackel Enterprises, a specialty lumber yard, sells softwood products and milling services including custom sawmilling to builders and craftsmen.

Find a softwood exporter from abroad

High demand for lumber and low trade prices have made the global lumber market boom. You can often find high-quality, fairly-priced softwood lumber from a foreign softwood exporter.

I recommend: Trans Pacific Trading, based in British Columbia, exports the finest softwoods all over the world and is a reliable source for hard-to-find items made of Douglas fir, Sitka spruce, hemlock and cedar (both yellow and red). Haut-Doubs Sciages is the third largest sawmill in France. It exports softwood lumber and sawn logs and specialize in fir and spruce.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Rough sawn softwood timbers are slightly larger than dressed timbers of the same nominal dimension.
• •  Order softwood lumber in random lengths if you don't need specific lengths of timbers and ask that a minimum percentage of the timbers come over a particular length to cut costs.

You probably already know that there are many different types of evergreen trees out there. But did you know that many of these evergreen trees, which are also know as coniferous trees, are in a grouping of pine cone- and needle-bearing trees called softwoods? These types of trees are mainly found in the Northern hemisphere because they like cooler, moist weather. Knowing some softwood key terms will give you a better understanding of this family of trees.

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Softwood

Softwood, also known as larkwood or Madmanwood, is the umbrella term for cone or needle-bearing trees such as pine trees. Despite their name, some softwoods are harder than trees in the hardwood family. This type of tree is native to the Northern hemisphere as it fares well in cold weather conditions.

I recommend: MamasHealth.com has helpful information on softwood trees, including their uses and the different species.

Coniferous

Pine cones originate from coniferous trees, as the name suggests. These trees are hearty evergreen trees and fall under the softwood category.

I recommend: Check out the map showing the locations of coniferous forests at the World Wildlife Fund.

Spruce

A spruce is a rapidly growing softwood tree that is one of the tallest evergreens. Its needles are shorter than other pines, and its pine cones grow in bunches at the end of the branches, unlike some other softwoods.

I recommend: 2020site.org has plenty of information about the history, origin and biology of spruce trees, including illustrations.

Cedar

When you hear the word 'cedar' you may think of the scent that is common in many households. Cedar trees are softwood trees that have four-angled leaves and bright red bark used in cabinets and other carpentry projects. They reach up to 100 feet in height and have branches that split out from the main trunk unlike other conifers, which have a main trunk only.

I recommend: Trees-Online.com has information about the cedar tree, as well as links to detailed descriptions of different varieties.

Hemlock

The hemlock is a medium-sized softwood that typically reaches heights of about 70 feet. You can find hemlocks in eastern North America, mainly cooler, wet climates. They bear small clusters of cones that are about 1/2 to 1 inch in length.

I recommend: Read up on hemlocks at the University of Connecticut Plant Database.

Redwoods

Some of the most majestic softwood trees out there are the redwoods. These conifers can grow upwards of around 400 feet and live to be hundreds of years old. Redwoods are native only to the coastal areas of California because of the unique environmental conditions.

I recommend: The National Park Service has more information on what makes this tree so special.