Comments: This light-colored wood is seen almost as frequently as oak, and is usually not stained a dark color, but is kept a natural whitish-cream or sometimes stained an amber-yellow. It's commonplace in furniture, flooring, trim, and in places where a pale, light-colored wood is needed. Quartersawn pieces with a freckled appearance are commonly used in countertops and butcher blocks.
Lookalikes: Birch (generally has narrower rays than those found in maple). Pine(generally much lighter and softer than maple, and with more conspicuous color in the growth rings).