The heartwood of Cherry varies from rich red to reddish brown and will darken on exposure to light. In contrast the sapwood is creamy white. The wood has a fine uniform straight grain, smooth texture, and may naturally contain brown pith flecks and small gum pockets

Cherry is easy to machine, nails and glues well and when sanded, stained and polished, it produces and excellent smooth finish. It dries fairly quickly with moderately large shrikage, but is dimensionally stable after kilning.