Wood is not just wood. A pressure-treated spruce picnic table sets different expectations than a teak bench that lasts thirty years — and douglas fir behaves very differently outdoors than pine. The Wood Guide is our knowledge base: for each species we honestly explain what it can do, where it performs best, and how much maintenance it actually needs. Choose with confidence, then go straight to the furniture made from it.
These are the wood species we actually work with in our own garden furniture. Click through to the full guide per species, or go directly to the range.
| Species | Family | Character | Outdoor maintenance | Read & browse |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spruce (vuren) | Softwood | Light & affordable workhorse | Pressure-treated: minimal | guide · range |
| Pine (grenen) | Softwood | Warm, easy to work | Protection recommended | guide · picnic tables |
| Douglas fir | Softwood | Toughest softwood, rich red tone | Little; weathers beautifully | guide · range |
| Teak | Tropical hardwood | Top-tier, decades of life | Virtually none | guide · range |
| Acacia | Hardwood | Hard yet budget-friendly | Oil preserves the colour | guide |
| Hardwood (general) | Collective term | Dense, weather-resistant | Minimal | guide · range |
| Oak | Hardwood | Iron-strong, full of character | Moderate | guide |
Torn between two species? We put the most popular choices side by side: pine or spruce and teak or hardwood.
Spruce, pine and douglas fir grow faster, are lighter in weight and considerably more affordable than tropical hardwoods. That makes them the natural choice for picnic tables, large garden sets and children's furniture. The key word is impregnation: pressure-treated softwood has a preservative driven deep into the wood fibres, giving it far longer outdoor life than untreated timber.
Douglas fir earns a special mention — it is the most durable of the softwood family, has a natural reddish warmth, and weathers to a handsome silver-grey without any treatment at all. For decking and large structures it often outperforms the other softwoods. Read more in our guide on sustainable wood species for outdoor use.
Teak is the benchmark. It contains natural silica and oils that make it inherently resistant to moisture, frost and insects — which is why a quality teak bench can sit through a Danish winter without a cover and still look good in spring. The wood slowly turns a silver-grey outdoors; one light oil treatment per year keeps the warm honey tone if you prefer it.
Acacia sits one step below teak in natural oil content but delivers serious density at a more accessible price point. Meranti and other tropical hardwoods used in our range share the same core qualities: slow growth, tight grain, long life. See what makes hardwood distinct in our full hardwood guide.
The same craftsmanship, three different materials — this is how wood knowledge translates into the garden.
Spruce
Pressure-treated spruce picnic tables are built to absorb daily use — school-holiday crowds, summer barbecues, Danish autumn rain. The wood is light, easy to move around and forgiving to work with. Ideal for families and hospitality use.
Browse spruce furniture →Teak
Teak garden furniture is a one-time purchase. Leave it outside all year, oil it occasionally or let it weather to silver — either way it stays structurally sound for decades. A teak bench in a Danish garden easily outlasts the garden itself.
Browse teak furniture →Acacia & hardwood
Hard, dense and weather-resistant — acacia and other hardwoods sit between spruce and teak in price, but closer to teak in durability. Annual oiling with a good hardwood oil keeps the colour rich and deep. Great value for a long-term garden investment.
Browse hardwood furniture →
Not every species in our knowledge bank is one we use in production — but understanding them is useful when you're comparing options or encounter a name in a specification sheet:
Wondering which species last longest outdoors in a northern European climate? Read our guide on durable wood species for outdoor use or the dedicated piece on the best wood species for decking.
The same principles — density, natural oil content, dimensional stability — apply when choosing wood for other outdoor applications. Our guides cover wood species for exterior doors and water-resistant species for bathroom furniture. A useful read before specifying joinery alongside your garden furniture.
Well-chosen wood lasts a long time. Well-maintained wood lasts even longer. The core rule is simple: match your maintenance routine to the species, not to a generic schedule.
Softwood (spruce, pine, douglas) benefits from cleaning off algae and mould each spring, followed by a fresh coat of wood oil or wood stain if the surface looks dry or faded. Start with our guide on maintenance of softwood garden furniture.
Hardwood (teak, acacia, meranti) can often get by with a clean and a single oil treatment per year — or none at all if you're happy with the silver-grey weathered look. Use a purpose-made hardwood oil; general DIY store products are often too thin to penetrate the dense grain.
Acting early against woodworm saves a lot of grief later — know the signs and treat promptly.
Understanding wood well means understanding the tree it came from. Explore the origins of the most common garden furniture timbers:
Need to work with measurements? Our guide on calculating a cubic metre of wood makes the maths straightforward. And if you want to personalise a piece, read up on engraving text or images into wood.
For heavy everyday use at a fair price, pressure-treated spruce or pine is the logical choice — which is why we build our picnic tables in thick softwood as standard. If you want virtually zero maintenance, look at our hardwood picnic tables instead.
Teak and other dense tropical hardwoods. A teak garden bench can simply be left to weather — it will slowly turn silver-grey but remain structurally sound. If you prefer the original warm tone, one light oil treatment per year is all it takes. Within softwoods, douglas fir requires the least attention.
Softwood (spruce, pine, douglas) grows faster, is lighter and more affordable. Hardwood (teak, oak, tropical species) is denser, heavier and naturally more resistant to weather and insects. The full breakdown is in our what is hardwood guide.
Teak and quality meranti handle sub-zero temperatures and sustained damp without structural damage. A breathable furniture cover in the deepest winter months reduces surface staining from leaves and algae but is not strictly necessary. Softwood furniture benefits more from winter protection — or at minimum, store cushions indoors and let water drain freely from the frame.
Yes — acacia is a dense, hard wood with good natural weather resistance and a warm, golden-brown tone. It contains less natural oil than teak, so an annual oiling makes a real difference to colour and surface condition. It sits comfortably in the middle: tougher than softwood, more affordable than teak, and genuinely long-lived with basic care.
The Wood Guide grows every month — new species profiles, maintenance schedules and comparison guides are added regularly. Knowledge first, then purchase: that is how buying garden furniture should work. Browse the full range by wood type below.
