Characterization of Juvenile wood in Lodgepole Pine in the Intermountain West

Abstract

Juvenile wood (core wood) is typically characterized as being less dimensionally stable and having lower mechanical properties than mature wood. Determination of the age of transition from juvenile wood to mature wood can provide basic information needed to assess dimensional stability and better utilize small-diameter trees growing in the intermountain west as solid-sawn products and as structural composites. While there is considerable information available on the variation of specific gravity with the age of the tree for westem conifers, specific gravity is not useful for predicting dimensional stability, and as a single predictor of mechanical properties only explains about 50% of the observed variation. Determination of the age of transition between juvenile wood and mature wood, and some of the factors that could effect this transition, is important when making judgments about utilization options for naturally occurring stands of trees in the intermountain west region of the United States.

Citation

Gorman, Thomas M.; Kretschmann, David E. 2012. Characterization of Juvenile wood in Lodgepole Pine in the Intermountain West. In: Proceedings of the 55th International Convention of Society of Wood Science and Technology, August 27-31,2012 - Beijing, CHINA; 2012.