The structure of the hardwoods is more complex.  They are more or less filled with vessels, in some cases (oak, chestnut, ash) quite large and distinct, in others (buckeye, poplar, gum) too small to be seen plainly without a small hand lens.  In discussing such woods it is customary to divide them into two large classes—­ring-porous and diffuse-porous. (See Fig. 22.) In ring-porous species, such as oak, chestnut, ash, black locust, catalpa, mulberry, hickory, and elm, the larger vessels or pores (as cross sections of vessels are called) become localized in one part of the growth ring, thus forming a region of more or less open and porous tissue.  The rest of the ring is made up of smaller vessels and a much greater proportion of wood fibres.  These fibres are the elements which give strength and toughness to wood, while the vessels are a source of weakness.

In diffuse-porous woods the pores are scattered throughout the growth ring instead of being collected in a band or row.  Examples of this kind of wood are gum, yellow poplar, birch, maple, cottonwood, basswood, buckeye, and willow.  Some species, such as walnut and cherry, are on the border between the two classes, forming a sort of intermediate group.

If one examines the smoothly cut end of a stick of almost any kind of wood, he will note that each growth ring is made up of two more or less well-defined parts.  That originally nearest the centre of the tree is more open textured and almost invariably lighter in color than that near the outer portion of the ring.  The inner portion was formed early in the season, when growth was comparatively rapid and is known as early wood (also spring wood); the outer portion is the late wood, being produced in the summer or early fall.  In soft pines there is not much contrast in the different parts of the ring, and as a result the wood is very uniform in texture and is easy to work.  In hard pine, on the other hand, the late wood is very dense and is deep-colored, presenting a very decided contrast to the soft, straw-colored early wood. (See Fig. 23.) In ring-porous woods each season’s growth is always well defined, because the large pores of the spring abut on the denser tissue of the fall before.  In the diffuse-porous, the demarcation between rings is not always so clear and in not a few cases is almost, if not entirely, invisible to the unaided eye. (See Fig. 22.)

[Illustration:  FIG. 23.—­Cross section of longleaf pine showing several growth rings with variations in the width of the dark-colored late wood.  Seven resin ducts are visible.  X 33. Photomicrograph by U.S.  Forest Service]