Hickory (Carya ovata)
Eastern United States
The heartwood is light to medium brown featuring a reddish hue and the sapwood is a pale yellow-brown. The grain is generally straight with occasional wave.
Hickory is extremely hard and notoriously difficult to work. It is prone to tearout with machines if the cutters are at all dull and it tends to blunt cutting edges. Despite all of this, it glues and finishes well.
Tool handles, wheel spokes and flooring. The wood is commonly used where strength or shock-resistance is important.
Hickory is among the hardest and strongest of woods native to North America. On average, Hickory is denser, stiffer, and harder than either White Oak or Hard Maple.