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What is spruce wood?

The Wood Guide · The wood register

Softwood · from our workshop

Spruce

Blond, light and straight-grained — the most widely used structural timber in Europe, and the wood our picnic tables are made of. Provided it is impregnated, because that is no detail.

  • Picea abies · Norway spruce
  • ±450 kg/m³ — light
  • Outdoors: impregnated only
Picea abies
Norway spruce (Picea abies)Norway sprucePicea abies
Planed glued-laminated spruce: pale and fine-grained (Picea abies)
Planed glued-laminated spruce: pale and fine-grainedPicea abies
End grain of a Norway spruce trunk with growth rings and knots (Picea abies)
End grain of a Norway spruce trunk with growth rings and knotsPicea abies
Summary

Spruce at a glance

Spruce grows quickly, is light in weight and works easily under saw and plane. It is available everywhere and therefore affordable — the reason you find it in everything from rafters to children's toys.

Spruce is the wood of the Norway spruce. In the timber trade it is often called "whitewood", in everyday language simply "spruce" — it is exactly the same wood. The tree grows in cool, damp regions: Norway, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Austria and Poland. The long, cold winters make it grow slowly, which produces a dense growth-ring structure with an even density. Exactly what carpenters value.

Why we build with it

Light enough for two people to move a picnic table, strong enough for daily use, and impregnated it holds up for years. Our KING picnic tables are built from it, with 40 mm boards.

Botanical
Picea abies (Norway spruce)
Colour
creamy white to pale yellow, even
Density
400–700 kg/m³, usually around 450
Hardness
490–520 lbf (Janka) — soft
Outdoors
±10–15 years, impregnated
Maintenance
cleaning; stain or oil every 1–2 years
Price range
entry level

To be fair: untreated, spruce only lasts a few years outdoors — impregnation is not an extra but a requirement.

In pictures · spruce, the wood of our picnic tables1 / 7
Whitewood = spruce

From the cold north

Spruce is the wood of the Norway spruce (Picea abies); in the trade it is often called “whitewood” — exactly the same wood. The tree grows in cool, damp regions — Norway, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Poland — and grows slowly, which gives a dense, even growth-ring structure.

Click a chapter or use the arrows · impregnation and trees schematic.

In the hand

How to recognise spruce

Four things you notice straight away when you pick up a board.

Pale and even

Creamy white to pale yellow, with no big colour difference between heartwood and sapwood. It yellows slightly in sunlight.

Straight, fine grain

The growth rings run tight and regular — the result of slow growth in a cold climate.

Small, tight knots

Spruce has knots, but smaller and tighter than pine. They rarely fall out.

Light in weight

Lift a board and you feel the difference with oak or teak straight away: spruce weighs about half as much.

The figures

Technical properties

Spruce scores high on workability and low on natural weather resistance. That is not a contradiction but the essence of the material.

Property Value
Botanical name Picea abies
Colour (fresh) Creamy white to pale yellow, even texture, straight grain
Density 400–700 kg/m³, depending on origin and growth rate
Hardness (Janka) 490–520 lbf
Workability Excellent: saws, planes, chisels and glues easily — by machine and by hand
Weather resistance, untreated Durability class 4 — not naturally resistant to moisture and fungi
Weather resistance, impregnated Class 3–4 — suitable for outdoors, provided it is correctly treated
Acoustic Excellent sound conduction — the classic choice for soundboards
What those classes mean

The durability classes come from the European standard EN 350 and run from 1 (very durable) to 5 (not durable). They classify how well a species resists rot by itself — not a quality mark and not a certificate.

Uses

What spruce is used for

Light, easy to work and widely available — that combination makes spruce the workhorse of many sectors.

Building and construction

The most widely used structural timber in Europe: rafters, floor joists, timber framing, cladding and scaffolding. Pressure-treated spruce is the standard for everything that touches the ground or long-term moisture.

Garden furniture

Picnic tables, beer tables, planters and play equipment. Browse the spruce range, the garden benches, garden chairs and flower and plant boxes.

Indoor furniture

Cupboards, beds, shelving and children's toys. Untreated spruce is light, neutral in colour and readily takes paint or stain.

Musical instruments

The straight grain and low density give excellent sound transmission: for centuries the favourite for the soundboards of violins, guitars and pianos.

Fine woodwork

Its soft, even structure makes spruce ideal for carving, mouldings and routing — right up to a sturdy storage chest.

From our range

Spruce for the little ones

In school gardens, nurseries and back gardens the spruce children's picnic table is a fixture: light enough to move, sturdy enough to last for years.

The weak spot, and the solution

Spruce outdoors: impregnate and maintain

Untreated spruce is in durability class 4: slightly durable. Impregnation makes it suitable for use classes 3 to 4 — and that difference is the whole story.

What impregnation does

Protection deep into the fibre

A preservative is forced deep into the wood cells under pressure. That makes spruce suitable for:

  • Garden furniture and structures above ground level (use class 3)
  • Cladding and decking (use class 3)
  • Structures in contact with the ground or fresh water (use class 4)
What you still do

Keep it clean and touch it up

Impregnation protects against rot and insects, not against UV. The colour is up to you:

  • Clean once a year with lukewarm water and soft soap — no pressure washer.
  • Every one to two years a stain or oil with UV protection.
  • Every spring check for splinters, cracks and places where water gets in.
  • A cover in winter considerably extends its lifespan.

The complete maintenance guide for softwood →

Indoors

Dust with a dry or slightly damp cloth, protect the surface with oil, wax or varnish against drying out and small scratches, and keep it out of full sun — spruce yellows faster there.

How to recognise impregnated wood?

By the light green or brownish tinge of the preservative. It fades with sun and rain; after that the wood takes on a silver-grey patina if you don't treat it again.

In perspective

Spruce next to other wood species

Spruce is soft, light and widely available — but not the right choice for every situation.

Wood species Hardness Outdoors, untreated Typical use
Spruce (Picea abies) Soft Class 4 — not suitable Construction, garden furniture (impregnated), indoor furniture
Pine (Pinus sylvestris) Soft–moderate Class 3–4 (heartwood) Outdoor structures, cladding, decking
Teak (Tectona grandis) Hard Class 1 — excellent High-end garden furniture, shipbuilding
Robinia (Robinia pseudoacacia) Very hard Class 1–2 — excellent Garden furniture, decking, posts
Meranti (Shorea spp.) Moderate–hard Class 2–3 Outdoor furniture, joinery, window frames

If you are looking for garden furniture that lasts for decades without much maintenance, you end up with a hardwood — teak or hardwood. If you want to know exactly how spruce compares with its closest relative, read pine or spruce.

For comparison: hardwood
Quick answer

Frequently asked questions about spruce

Is whitewood the same as spruce?

Yes. Both terms refer to the wood of the Norway spruce (Picea abies). "Whitewood" is the usual trade term; "spruce" is the everyday name. You can read more about the tree itself in the spruce tree species.

Can I use untreated spruce outdoors?

Better not. Untreated spruce is in durability class 4 and is quickly attacked outdoors by moisture, fungi and insects. For outdoors you need impregnated spruce, which pressure treatment makes suitable for use classes 3 to 4.

How do I recognise impregnated spruce?

By the light green or brownish tint the preservative leaves behind. That colour fades with sun and rain; if you then leave the wood untreated, it takes on a greyish to silvery-white patina.

How often should I treat spruce garden furniture?

As a rule of thumb every one to two years, with a stain or oil for outdoor wood. The more intensive the use and the more sun and rain, the more often. A cover in winter considerably reduces how often you need to do it. In our maintenance guide you will find the water test with which you can check it yourself.

What is the difference between spruce and pine?

They look very much alike, but are botanically different. Pine (Pinus sylvestris) has more resin, is slightly harder and its heartwood is naturally more durable. The full story is in pine or spruce.

Is spruce a sustainable choice?

Spruce is a renewable raw material that grows quickly and is widely available in Europe. Wood that lasts a long time is by definition the most sustainable choice — so for outdoor use always choose impregnated products, which last considerably longer.

More in The Wood Guide

Still not decided?

Spruce is one of the twelve species in our register. Feel free to compare further — or go straight to the tables we build from it.

To The Wood Guide KING picnic tables Compare with pine

Have a question about your project? Just ask — we're happy to help.

Picea abies — Elke Wetzig (elya), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Picea abies — ILoveAllTrees, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo via Wikimedia Commons: Picea abies — Wolfgang Moroder, CC BY-SA 3.0

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