Thirty-one woods were surveyed for inorganic elements present in sufficient quantity to be sensitive to instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). Samples were irradiated with thermal neutrons in a TRIGA Mark II nuclear reactor. The gamma ray spectra were analyzed with NaI(Tl) and Ge(Li) detectors and a multichannel analyzer. Radioisotopes present were identified by their gamma energy peaks and decay rates. Elements identified included Al, Br, Ca, Cl, K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Nb, Ni, Os, Rb, In, Si, Sr, S, Te, V, and Zr. Elemental quantities ranged from 1 to 5,000 parts per million. The method was reproducible, rapid, convenient and nondestructive. NAA offers an effective approach to numerous unsettled problems in such wood-related areas as diffusion processes, plant genetics and physiology, tree nutrition, and soils analysis.