Macroscopic structure of Pinus sylvestris L. wood during introduction to the Central forest-steppe

The macroscopic structure of Pinus sylvestris L. wood growing in the geographical cultures of the Central forest-steppe (Bryansk, Voronezh, and Volgograd climatypes), natural forests of the broad-leaved forest zone of the Bryansk region, the zone of the southern forest-steppe of the Voronezh region and the dry steppe of the Volgograd region was studied. The dependence of the annual ring width on the degree of humidification was found. When Pinus sylvestris L. moving in arid conditions of the dry steppe, changes in the annual ring width were noted, this is an adaptive feature of plants to environmental conditions. The early wood is more susceptible to changes in width depending on the growing conditions than late wood. In geographical cultures of Pinus sylvestris L. created in the Central Forest-steppe of the Voronezh Region climatypes from the Bryansk region have a decrease in the annual ring width and climatypes from the Volgograd region have an increase in the annual ring width, which is related to a change in the degree of humidification. Macrostructural features of wood can be an indicator of the climate in certain natural conditions.

Formation of pine wood density depending on the parameters of annual ring and latitudinal zoning

The article presents the results of studies of changes in wood density depending on annual ring width and its characteristics. Density is a basic indicator for assessing operational and technical properties of wood. At the same time, density is characterized by certain variability within the same species, depending on annual ring characteristics, influenced by environmental factors, age of trees and position in the trunk. The purpose of this study is to establish the formation of density depending on annual ring width and late wood for Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) wood in the central European part of Russia. Density research was made using the specimens with one annual ring by the method of buoyancy. Absolute values of the annual ring of early and late wood were measured in cores. It was found that wood density is only influenced by late wood width in the annual ring, being under strict genetic control. In the southern taiga zone correlation between density and late wood width is varying between 0.49-0.66 and it is less than in the forest-steppe zone. The correlation of density with annual ring width in the southern taiga zone is 0.5. It is less than in the forest-steppe zone (0.57-0.81).

Relationship of tracheid length, annual ring width, and wood density in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) trees from different social classes of tree position in the stand

This study investigated the relationship between the length of the tracheids, the width of annual rings, and the wood density of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) obtained from the dominant, intermediate, and suppressed classes of a 60-year-old stand. Measurement of tracheid length was performed on the material macerated from the following annual rings: 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, and thence every 5 annual rings. Basic density was determined on samples that included five annual rings from the core to bark. Tree position in the stand had a significant impact on the examined properties of wood. In a given biosocial class, tracheid length decreased as the width of annual rings increased. As the biosocial position of a tree in the stand improved, the length of the tracheids increased, and wood density decreased. In wood of the same density range, the increment in tracheid length was the greatest in wood of dominant trees and the lowest in wood of suppressed trees.

Correlation between Anatomical Grading and Acoustic–Elastic Properties of Resonant Spruce Wood Used for Musical Instruments

This paper deals with the acoustic and elastic properties of resonant wood, classified into four classes, according to the classification of wood quality by the manufacturers of musical instruments. Traditionally, the quality grades of resonant wood are determined on the basis of the visual inspections of the macroscopic characteristics of the wood (annual ring width, regularity, proportion of early and late wood, absence of defects, etc.). Therefore, in this research, we studied whether there are correlations between the acoustic and elastic properties and the anatomical characteristics of wood used for the construction of violins. The results regarding the identification of the anatomical properties of resonant spruce, the wood color, and the acoustic/elastic properties, determined by ultrasonic measurements, were statistically analyzed to highlight the connection between the determined properties. From the statistical analysis, it can be seen that the only variables with the power to separate the quality classes are (in descending order of importance) the speed of sound propagation in the radial direction, Poisson’s ratio in the longitudinal–radial direction, and the speed of propagation of sounds in the longitudinal direction.

Radial variations to wood anatomical and chemical properties in eight poplar clones

Wood properties are crucial for the development and application of poplar clones. Here, the effects of clone and age on anatomical and chemical properties were analyzed in eight poplar clones (clone 50, Zhonglin46, 108, 36, N179, Danhong, Sangju, and Nanyang) from Henan province, China. The results showed that the effects of clone and age were both significant for these wood properties. Eight clones were grouped into three clusters according to their annual ring width, fiber quality, and chemical properties. For some properties including annual ring width, fiber length, and microfibril angle, all clones displayed the same radial variation trends. Whereas, for other ones, such as holocellulose content, the radial variation trends were different depending on clones. The culmination of the mean annual increment corresponded to the turning ages of wood properties such as annual ring width in eight clones and holocellulose content in partial clones except for fiber length, microfibril angle, and vessel length. The rotation age of the poplar clones could be determined as 8-9 years based on the fiber quality and chemical components. These results indicated strong genetic and age control of the wood properties and highlighted the rich source of variation for poplar clone selection.

Variations in Wood Density, Annual Ring Width and Vessel Properties of Quercus brantii Affected by Crown Dieback

Tree decline due to climate change results in physiological weaknesses, attacks by harmful pests and pathogens and threats to forest ecosystem stability. In the work described here, the effects of drought on wood density, tree ring width and variations in vessel morphology are investigated in Persian oak (Quercus brantii) in the forest of the Zagros Mountains, Ilam Province, western Iran. Discs are cut from trunks of declined and healthy trees and woodblocks are cut radially from the sapwood near the bark, at a mid-point between the vascular cambium and the pith (middle) and from wood near the pith. Observations are made on transverse sections from the blocks using microscopy. In trees with decline symptoms, wood density is greater than in healthy trees. Furthermore, declining trees have the narrowest ring width, reduced vessel diameter and area and the highest numbers of vessels and tylose in pith towards the bark. It is concluded that changes in anatomical features are associated with the weakening of trees and are components of declining tree health.

MOR and MOE of Serbian Spruce (Picea omorika Pančić/Purkyně) Wood from Natural Stands

The paper presents the results of testing the bending stress of Serbian spruce wood from natural stands. In testing the samples, in addition to the modulus of rupture, the bending stress at the proportionality limit, the ratio between the stress at the proportionality limit and the modulus of rupture as well as the modulus of elasticity of wood were determined. The study included nine trees from natural stands, and a total of 261 samples were tested. Regression analysis determined the dependences of these mechanical properties on the annual ring width, the proportion of late wood and wood density, as well as the dependence of the modulus of elasticity on the modulus of rupture.

Automatic detection of pith location along norway spruce timber boards on the basis of optical scanning

Knowledge of annual ring width and location of pith in relation to board cross-sections, and how these properties vary in the longitudinal direction of boards, is relevant for many purposes, such as assessment of shape mechanical properties and stability of sawn timber. Hence, the present research aims at developing a novel method and an algorithm, based on data obtained from optical surface scanning, by which the pith location along the length of sawn timber boards can be determined accurately and automatically. The first step of the method is to identify clear wood sections, free of defects along boards. Then time-frequency analysis, using the continuous wavelet transform, is applied to detect the surface annual ring width distribution of the four sides of the selected sections. Finally, the pith location is estimated by comparing annual ring width distributions on the different surfaces, and assuming that annual rings are concentric circles with the pith in the centre. The proposed algorithm was applied to a total sample of 104 Norway spruce boards. Results indicate that optical scanners and the suggested automatic method allow for accurate detection of annual ring width and location of pith along boards. For a sample of boards with the pith located within the cross-section, a mean error of 2.6 mm and 3.2 mm in the depth and thickness direction, respectively, was obtained. For a sample of boards of which 60% with pith located outside the cross-section, a mean discrepancy between automatically and manually determined pith locations of 3.9 mm and 5.8 mm in depth and thickness direction, respectively, was obtained.

Climate Response of Metasequoia glyptostroboides Inferred from Tree Rings, Secrest Arboretum, Wooster, Ohio, USA

Metasequoia glyptostroboides, a deciduous gymnosperm, also known as dawn redwood, was thought to be extinct until living members of the species were found in China in 1943. Analyzing the climate response of a transplanted stand of the trees can give insights into their physiological plasticity, into their use in restoration and reforestation, as well as into interpreting the environmental conditions of the geologic past from fossil Metasequoia. An annual ring-width chronology—spanning 1955 to 2010 and based on a stand of 19 M. glyptostroboides trees planted in Secrest Arboretum in northeast Ohio, USA—shows negative correlations with maximum monthly temperatures: with the strongest relationship with February and the warm months of June and July, all significant at the 99% confidence levels. A positive May to June precipitation correlation is the strongest moisture signal (p < 0.05) and the narrowest rings in the chronology occurred during the drought of 1987 to 1988, consistent with one of the warmest and driest Junes on record. These results have implications for the future as climate change affects the native and transplanted range of this species. Future response of this species to a changing climate will depend on the relative rates of warming maximum temperatures in the winter and summer, as well as changing moisture conditions during the summer months.

Examining Naturogenic Processes and Anthropogenic Influences on Tree Growth and Development via Stem Analysis: Data Processing and Computational Analytics

The objective of this study was to develop a stem analysis data processing and computational algorithm and associated software suite that was (1) applicable to temperate and boreal forest tree species, (2) mathematically consistent with excurrent tree stem geometric and allometric principles, (3) compatible with data structures obtained using proprietary and non-proprietary imaging systems, and (4) executable on Windows®-based operating systems. Computationally, the suite denoted SAP (Stem Analysis Program), deployed sectional-specific formulae that were in accord with the following geometric assumptions: (1) stump section was treated as a solid of revolution resembling a cylinder; (2) sections between the stump and the tip were treated as a solid of revolution resembling a frustum of a cone for sections with continuous annual increments, otherwise treated as a cone; and (3) tip section was treated as a solid of revolution resembling a cone. The algorithm also corrected for the slant-based sectional length measurements using Pythagorean Theorem and eliminated the requirement to predict age-specific apex height development through the use of a linear interpolation procedure. Based on input data structures consisting of annual ring-width xylem sequences measured from cross-sectional disk samples acquired at multiple positions along the tree’s main stem, the suite produces a broad array of output, inclusive of radial and longitudinal ring-width sequences, apical growth increments, annual and cumulative sectional and cumulative volume production patterns, and historically reconstructed stem taper profiles. In total, the SAP creates six output data files for each tree analyzed: (1) input data reference summary (e.g., geometric mean ring-widths and resultant radii for each cross-section); (2) radial growth patterns for the cross-section sampled at breast-height (e.g., absolute and relative diameter and basal area growth estimates); (3) sectional (vertical) profiles of volume growth patterns (e.g., absolute and relative growth estimates within each section (bolt)); (4) cumulative volume growth patterns for the entire tree; (5) historical taper profile estimates (e.g., heights and diameters by year); and (6) texturally-labeled compendium of all output files generated. Additionally, real-time graphical output was produced for the purposes of data assessment and verification during the radial sequence data acquisition stage (e.g., graphical presentation of annual ring-width sequences by radii and disk, for use in validating input data structures and increment measurements derived from the imaging system), and interpreting growth and development patterns (e.g., vertical growth layer and specific volume increment profiles by age or year). The utility of the SAP suite was exemplified by processing WindendroTM-based annual ring-width xylem sequences obtained from cross-sectional disks extracted from a jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) tree via percent-height destructive stem analysis, and subsequently elucidating growth and developmental patterns within the context of silviculture treatment effects (thinning). The SAP suite provides the conceptual and logistical foundation for the continued deployment of the stem analysis approach in a wide range of investigations, including those examining the effect of naturogenic processes and anthropogenic influences on tree growth and development.