Balsa Is Technically a Hardwood

Balsa comes from Ochroma pyramidale, a flowering broadleaf tree—so botanically it is a hardwood. However, its wood is among the lightest commercial timbers because hardwood and softwood describe tree groups, not actual hardness.

Surprising takeaway: One of the softest woods you can press with a fingernail belongs to the same broad botanical category as Maple, Oak and Ebony.