Spruce wood is soft and light, it is marketed with pine and balsam fir as lumber because they are similar in hardness and strength. When you see 2x4 lumber in house building it is usually spruce, it...
Hardwoods are denser, hence harder. They come from deciduous trees that lose their leaves in the winter: aspen, poplar, birch, maple, etc. Softwoods are less dense. They come from coniferous...