Abstract
Understanding the durability of emerging plantation hardwood resources is important for optimising their production and use. This study compared timber density, extractives content and decay resistance in 12–13-year-old plantation and native forest regrowth Gympie messmate (Eucalyptus cloeziana) trees. Density increased from pith to bark for both plantation and native forest trees. Inner heartwood density of the plantation timber was significantly lower than that of the native forest regrowth timber. While the total extractives content of the outer heartwood was comparable in the plantation and native forest regrowth trees, the inner heartwood of the latter contained significantly greater extractives levels. Laboratory decay tests showed that all heartwood zones of plantation and native forest regrowth Gympie messmate were resistant to decay by the white rot Pycnoporus coccineus. The inner heartwood of the plantation timber was, however, susceptible to decay by the brown rot Fomitopsis ostreiformis. The results illustrate the potential variations in wood quality parameters to be considered when moving from native forest to plantation resources that are harvested at a younger age and managed for more rapid wood production.
Funding source: Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
Funding source: Forest and Wood Products Australia
Funding source: University of the Sunshine Coast
Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledge the sampling assistance provided by the team at Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Queensland’s (DAF’s) Salisbury Research Facility, along with the assistance of Mr Tengfei Yi from the University of the Sunshine Coast (UniSC) for laboratory decay test sampling. Dr. David Mayer and Dr. William Leggate from DAF are gratefully acknowledged for biometry assistance and for reviewing the draft of this manuscript, respectively.
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Research ethics: Not applicable.
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Author contributions: The authors have accepted responsibility for the entire contentof this manuscript and approved its submission.
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Competing interest: The authors state no conflict of interest.
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Research funding: Research was supported by Forest and Wood Products Australia, University of the Sunshine Coast and Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Queensland, through the National Centre for Timber Durability and Design Life.
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Data availability: The raw data can be obtained on reasonable request from thecorresponding author.
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