• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.26-52
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• 1987

Among the diffuse-porous woods which arc dominant in Korea and used as construction materials due to their wood quality, ten species of six genus involving seven species of three genus in Betulaceae were studied on the radial variation of structural demenb. The species studied were Betula platyphylla var. japonica, B. ermanii, B. davurica, B. scstata, B. schmidtii, Carpinus laxifora, Alnus japonica, Prunus sargentii. Acer mono and Diospyros kaki. Wood fiber, vessel elements and ray increased rapidly in size from pith to a certain annual ring. After then the radial variation in size of the main structural elements seemed to be divided into three types; levelled off curve pattern indicating constant size(type I), continuously increasing curve pattern showing ever increase in size (type II) and parabolic curve pattern showing the gradual decrease after the maximum (type III), but the variation types by structural dements were different even in the same species. Based on the results from this study, it appears to be reasonable to consider the stabilized age of wood fiber, vessel elements and ray rather than considering wood fiber length in distinguishing mature woods from juvenile woods.