FAST FACTS Sassafras

Family names: Sassafras albidum and Sassafras officinale of the family Lauraceae
Common names: Sassafras, cinnamon wood, red
sassafras, golden elm, saxifraxtree, sassafac, aguetree.
Dimensions: Height varies with region. Southern trees generally grow tallest with average heights of 80 feet. Weight range is 28 to 31 pounds per cubic foot.
Properties: Sassafras wood is light in color, from a pale brown to an orangeish brown. It resembles ash, chestnut and hackberry in appearance, but is softer than all three. Sassafras is noted for being a "soft" hardwood with an interesting grain pattern.
Byproducts: Sassafras tea is made by boiling the tree's flowers and root bark. Sassafras oil is distilled from the tree's roots and is used as a perfume in soaps and an ingredient in medicine. Pioneers also used the bark to dye material orange.
Uses: Sassafras can be used for everything from furniture to fence posts and boxes to boat parts. Selected logs are sliced into veneer. Use of sassafras is described as limited for both lumber and veneer.
Source: Vance Publishing Corp.