Helaman 3:7

And there being but little timber upon the face of the land, nevertheless the people which went forth, became exceeding expert in the working of cement; therefore they did build houses of cement, in the which they did dwell.

There was very little wood on the land. But the people who went there became very skilled at working with cement. So they built houses of cement. They lived in them.

With so little timber available, the settlers became experts at working with cement. They built cement houses and lived in them.