• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.33-62
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• 1972

Pitch pine (Pinus rigida Miller) in Korea has become one of the major silvicultural species for many years since it was introduced from the United States of America in 1907. To attain the more rational wood utilization basical researches on wood properties are primarily needed, since large scale of timber production from Pitch Pine trees has now been accomplishing in the forested areast hroughout the country. Under the circumustances, this experiment was carried out to study the wood anatomical, physical and mechanical properties of Pitch Pine grown in the country. Materials used in this study had been prepared by cutting the selected pitch pine trees from the Seoul National University Forests located in Suwon. To obtain and compare the anatomical and physical properties of the different parts of tree such as stem, branch, top and rootwood, this study had been divided into two categories (anatomical and physical). For the anatomical study macroscopical and microscopical features such as annual ring, intercellular cannal, ray, tracheid, ray trachid, ray parenchyma cell and pit etc. were observed and measured by the different parts (stem, branch, root and topwood) of tree. For the physical and mechanical properties the moisture content of geen wood, wood specific gravity, shrinkage, compression parallel to the grain, tension parallel and perpendicular to the grain, radial and tangential shear, bending, cleavage and hardness wree tested. According to the results this study may be concluded as follows: 1. The most important comparable features in general properties of wood among the different parts of tree were distinctness and width of annual ring, transition from spring to summerwood, wood color, odor and grain etc. In microscopical features the sizes of structural elements of wood were comparable features among the parts of tree. Among their features, length, width and thickness of tracheids, resin ducts and ray structures were most important. 2. In microscopical features among the different parts of tree stem and topwood were shown simillar reults in tissues. However in rootwood compared with other parts on the tangential surface distinctly larger ray structures were observed and measured. The maximum size of unseriate ray was attained to 27 cell ($550{\mu}$) height in length and 35 microns in width. Fusiform rays were formed occasionally the connected ray which contain one or several horizontal cannals. Branchwood was shown the same features like stemwood but the measured values were very low in comparing with other parts of tree. 3. Trachid length measured among the different parts of tree were shown largest in stem and shortest in branchwood. In comparing the tracheid length among the parts the differences were not shown only between stem and rootwood, but shown between all other parts of tree. Trachid diameters were shown widest in rootwood and narrowest in branchwood, and the differences among the different parts were not realized. Wall thickness were shown largest value in rootwood and smallest in branchwood, and the differences were shown between root and top or branchwood, and between stem and branch or top wood, but not shown between other parts of tree. 4. Moisture contents of green wood were shown highest in topwood and lowest in heartwood of stem. The differences among the different parts were recognized between top or heartwood and other parts of tree, but not between root and branchwood or root and sapwood. 5. Wood specific gravities were shown highest in stem and next order root and branchwood, but lowest in topwood. The differences were shown clearly between stemwood and other parts of tree, but not root and branchwood. However the significant difference is realized as most lowest value in topwood. 6. In compression strength parallel to the grain compared among the different parts of tree at the 14 percent of moisture content, highest strength was appeared in stem, next order branch and rootwood, but lowest in topwood. 7. In bending strength compared among the different parts of tree at the 14 percent of moisture content clearly highest strength was shown in branchwood, next order stem and root, but lowest in topwood. Though the branchwood has lower specific gravity than stemwood it was shown clearly high bending strength.