American black walnut, the universal favorite

T) EMAND for black walnut. the L7 n31ivp American hardwood that is prized the world over for fine furniture, paneling and other decorative uses, rose last year by more thanlSTo over the previous year, according to recent U.S. Department of Commerce figures.

Despite the increase in consumption of black walnut veeneer logs, both export and domestic, to 26.6 million board feet, the total is still well below 1963 and 1968 when total annual consumption was a whopping 37.9 million. In l97l the bottom line figure on usage was 23. I million.

As might be expected in a time of booming housing starts and inflation, the dollar value ofthis popular

Story at a Glance

Consumption of black walnut logs continues strong here and abroad, recent increases reflect large hikes in export figures dollar values also rise total consumption still lags '63 and '68 figures.

hardwood has continued its steadY move upward since the beginning of the 1970s. During the past year, the average dollar value was $1,293 per thousand board feet, compared to $1.f67 in l97I and $I,142 the year before.

The larger part of the increase in board footage, some 15.1 million, was accounted for by increased exports of the wood. The new figpre is 2.2 million more than was exported in the previous year. Domestic veneer log consumption rose 1.3 million board feet to Il.5 million in l97I-2.

Grown in Eastern North America, the black walnut, properly known as Juglans nigra, is a relative of the California black walnut that is generally considered to be an inferior species, though that can get you an argument in some quarters. The correct appellation for the Western wood is Juglans california. Both are related to an aromatic timber tree in Australia.

VERYONE is probably tired of hearing about shortages of everything. Yet, it's a condition that businessmen will have to adapt to for the foreseeable future. Their ability to learn about new sources of supply, work with substitute products and do a good juggling act with inventories will spell the difference between profit and loss or even staying in business.

The situation is particularly acute in hardwoods.

Domestic sources are dwindling because many forests have been worked without new planting programs. Hardwoods have a long growth cycle and many of the cutover areas are being converted to other uses. The increasing demand for products manufactured from woods, as the population grows and becomes more affluent, is also having an effect. Certain species are also in great demand by other countries which are willing to pay higher prices.