This unique charcuterie board is made from a pear tree that has been salvaged from a Niagara orchard.
I have done my best to match the colour of the wood in the photographs, but it is hard to duplicate online the soft brown and orange colours in the wood. The grain pattern in unique to fruitwoods like this.
This board is 18 inches long, around 8 inches wide, and 1 1/8 inches thick.
Niagara fruit growers are constantly changing their crops, and more and more land is being sold to developers. When fruit orchards are no longer needed, the trees are bulldozed into a pile, roots and all, and then burned.
Because orchards are cut down and then immediately burned, this is very rare wood.
Every board is unique because the trees are pruned hard over many years, causing the wood grain to twist and swirl. This board is made from a single piece of wood from the trunk of a tree, which is the widest wood. The sides are irregular with a wide flare at one end and the pear wood is naturally a warm brown/orange in colour.
This wood took over a year to dry, cut and process. The natural checks and cracks caused by bark inclusions, tension in the wood, and the drying process are filled with black epoxy to create a flat top surface. The bark is still on.
The charcuterie board is finished in multiple coats of food-safe tung oil. The finish will last many years, and can be renewed by applying more tung oil available at most hardware stores.
Because this is natural wood, it may warp and bend over the year with changes in humidity. The wood was dried in my kiln to 7% moisture content, so any seasonal changes should be limited.
Pear is a somewhat soft wood, so avoid using a sharp knife on this serving board. A blunt knife used on a hard cheese may leave a slight mark, but this patina would not be very visible.
