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The Influence of Forest Management on Wood Quality and End-Product...
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The Influence of Forest Management on Wood Quality and End-Product Potential

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Ecology and Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 4686

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Tomasz Jelonek

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego Str. 71 A, 60-625 Poznan, Poland
Interests: forest science; wood science; wood biology; tree biomechanics; forest utilisation; wood quality; wood structure; ergonomics
Dr. Peter F. Newton

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Canadian Wood Fibre Centre, Canadian Forest Service, Natural Resources Canada, Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 2E5, Canada
Interests: density management decision-support systems; non-destructive evaluation of end-product potential; wood quality and fibre attribute modelling; stem analysis analytics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The economic worth of a harvested wood product depends not only on its quantity but also—and more importantly—on its quality. For example, production efficiency and the end-product potential are largely determined by the quality of the raw wood material, which itself is determined by numerous underlying intrinsic and extrinsic factors: e.g., genetics and site quality as well as silvicultural inputs such as density management treatments.

In the near future, the constant and increased demand for high-quality wood will lead to its scarcity in the global market. This poses a real challenge for modern forestry to find new solutions for better forest management and crop planning methods which not only will preserve forest sustainability, but also lead to increased wood production of a predetermined quality. Currently, however, an insufficient understanding exists with respect to the underlying biology, ecological drivers, and anthropogenic inputs that control the xylem formation process.

This Special Issue of Forests will be devoted to addressing this knowledge gap by reporting on research advancements with respect to the factors that directly and indirectly influence the wood formation process, specifically in relation to the underlying biophysical mechanisms as well as forest management inputs that can ultimately affect wood quality and associated end-product potential. Research on climate-sensitive silvicultural tools and methods that can advance crop planning decision-making with respect to wood quality objectives, as well as wood quality investigations into the commercial utility of post-natural-disaster wood, are also welcome.

Prof. Dr. Tomasz Jelonek
Dr. Peter F. Newton
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • properties, processes and drives of wood formulation
  • forest management
  • crop planning
  • timber production
  • post-disaster wood

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1769 KiB  
Article
Seed Source Selection for Improvement of Growth and Wood Traits in 10-Year-Old Fraxinus griffithii C. B. Clarke Trees Planted in Northern Highlands of Thailand
by Pajaree Wongwachimaphet, Trairat Neimsuwan, Futoshi Ishiguri, Ikumi Nezu and Sapit Diloksumpun
Forests 2024, 15(11), 1974; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15111974 - 8 Nov 2024
Viewed by 366
Abstract
Fraxinus griffithii C. B. Clarke is introduced from Taiwan to Thailand by the Royal Project Foundation beginning of the 1980s for highland rehabilitation. To improve the growth traits and tree form characteristics, a tree breeding program for this species has been initiated. In [...] Read more.
Fraxinus griffithii C. B. Clarke is introduced from Taiwan to Thailand by the Royal Project Foundation beginning of the 1980s for highland rehabilitation. To improve the growth traits and tree form characteristics, a tree breeding program for this species has been initiated. In the present study, we evaluated the among seed sources variations in growth traits (diameter at 1.3 m above the ground [DBH] and tree height) and wood traits (basic density [BD], modulus of elasticity [MOE], modulus of rupture [MOR], and compressive strength parallel to the grain [CS]) of 10-year-old F. griffithii trees originated from 15 seed sources planted in highland areas of Thailand. The mean values of measured trees were 7.25 cm in DBH, 11.59 m in tree height, 0.76 g/cm3 in basic density, 9.74 GPa in MOE, 100.78 MPa in MOR, and 38.46 MPa in CS, respectively. Broad-sense heritability ranged from 0.13 to 0.16 in growth traits and 0.02 to 0.85 in wood traits. As a result of principle component analysis and cluster analysis, 15 seed sources were classified into three groups. Of the three groups, one showed good performance in both growth and wood traits. Significant phenotypic and genetic correlations were found between growth traits and between wood traits. However, no significant correlations were found between growth and wood traits. Based on the results, it is concluded that progeny with good performance of both growth and wood traits can be produced from the combinations of superior seed sources tested in the present study. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Influence of Forest Management on Wood Quality and End-Product Potential)
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15 pages, 9392 KiB  
Article
Electrical Properties at Multi-Frequencies for Analysis of Physical and Anatomical Properties of Fast-Growing Standing Teak Trees at Various Ages
by Dyah Ayu Agustiningrum, Iskandar Zulkarnaen Siregar, Ratih Damayanti, Warsito Purwo Taruno, Harisma Nugraha, Rohmadi and Lina Karlinasari
Forests 2024, 15(4), 669; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15040669 - 7 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1003
Abstract
Fast-growing teak trees are cultivated extensively in Indonesia to meet the growing demand for teak wood. However, it is necessary to assess the conditions of teak stands throughout their growth period. The nondestructive testing of wood utilizing dielectric spectroscopy approaches based on electrical [...] Read more.
Fast-growing teak trees are cultivated extensively in Indonesia to meet the growing demand for teak wood. However, it is necessary to assess the conditions of teak stands throughout their growth period. The nondestructive testing of wood utilizing dielectric spectroscopy approaches based on electrical properties is currently under development, particularly for evaluating tree stands. This study aimed to analyze the dielectric values of fast-growing teak tree stands within a frequency range of 250 kHz to 60 MHz and to understand the relationship between their physical and anatomical properties. A capacitance measurement system was employed to collect dielectric spectroscopy data directly from trees aged 4, 5, and 7 years. Simultaneously, physical and anatomical samples were obtained using a 0.5 cm diameter increment borer. The results revealed significant differences in the fiber length, lumen diameter, and wall thickness at each age. The optimal dielectric frequency for distinguishing wood properties in standing trees was identified to be within a range of 18 MHz to 23 MHz. In the linear model, a moderate relationship was observed with a correlation coefficient of (r)0.403, although the coefficient of determination (r2) was weak at 0.162 for green density. However, a robust relationship was observed in the linear model for specific gravity with r = 0.826 and r2 = 0.682. A weak but significant relationship was also identified with r = 0.2, a coefficient of determination of r2 = 0.04, and a significance level < 0.05 in the predictive model of wood anatomy properties (vessel diameter and fiber wall thickness). Models with low r2 but high significance indicate that the independent variables still noticeably contribute to explaining the dependent variable. Further analysis and data processing can be enhanced by identifying the crucial variables in the capacitance measurement system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Influence of Forest Management on Wood Quality and End-Product Potential)
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14 pages, 2668 KiB  
Article
The Possibility of Using Non-Native Spruces for Norway Spruce Wood Replacement—A Case Study from the Czech Republic
by Aleš Zeidler, Vlastimil Borůvka, Pavel Brabec, Karol Tomczak, Jakub Bedřich, Zdeněk Vacek, Jan Cukor and Stanislav Vacek
Forests 2024, 15(2), 255; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15020255 - 29 Jan 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1293
Abstract
European forests are facing ongoing climate change, and certain tree species are being critically impacted. The Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) is one of the most sensitive species to climate fluctuations, a fact manifesting itself through massive dieback resulting in a [...] Read more.
European forests are facing ongoing climate change, and certain tree species are being critically impacted. The Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) is one of the most sensitive species to climate fluctuations, a fact manifesting itself through massive dieback resulting in a lack of high-quality timber and timber market destabilization. Therefore, the possibility of wood substitution with non-native spruce species, namely, black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) Britt., Sterns, et Poggenburg), Serbian spruce (Picea omorika (Pančić) Purk.), and blue spruce (Picea pungens Engelm.), under the specific conditions of forest reclamations with great potential for future afforestation was tested. Wood density, modulus of rupture, and modulus of elasticity were used to evaluate wood quality in comparison with native Norway spruce. The results confirmed that only the Serbian spruce reached the quality of Norway spruce and even exceeded it in terms of wood density (P. omorika 525 kg·m−3 vs. P. abies 517 kg·m−3) and exhibited comparable parameters with regard to other properties. The density of the other species was significantly lower for blue spruce (476 kg·m−3) and black spruce (468 kg·m−3). A similar trend was found for other wood parameters, which confirmed that Norway spruce quality was nearly comparable with that of Serbian spruce. On the other hand, black spruce and blue spruce did not match the quality of Norway spruce. The within-stem variability of the properties tested was low for all the spruce species examined. In conclusion, the Serbian spruce showed great potential for future usage in forest management and is one of the possible methods of Norway spruce replacement in times of unprecedented forest disturbances under the effects of global climate change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Influence of Forest Management on Wood Quality and End-Product Potential)
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46 pages, 13081 KiB  
Article
Development of Spatiotemporal Whole-Stem Models for Estimating End-Product-Based Fibre Attribute Determinates for Jack Pine and Red Pine
by Peter F. Newton
Forests 2023, 14(11), 2211; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14112211 - 8 Nov 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1129
Abstract
The objective of this study was to develop spatiotemporal whole-stem wood quality prediction models for a suite of end-product-based fibre attribute determinates for jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) and red pine (Pinus resinosa Aiton): specifically, for wood density (Wd [...] Read more.
The objective of this study was to develop spatiotemporal whole-stem wood quality prediction models for a suite of end-product-based fibre attribute determinates for jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) and red pine (Pinus resinosa Aiton): specifically, for wood density (Wd), microfibril angle (Ma), modulus of elasticity (Me), fibre coarseness (Co), tracheid wall thickness (Wt), tracheid radial diameter (Dr), tracheid tangential diameter (Dt), and specific surface area (Sa). Procedurally, these attributes were determined for each annual ring within pith-to-bark xylem sequences extracted from 610 jack pine and 223 red pine cross-sectional disks positioned throughout the main stem of 61 jack pine and 54 red pine sample trees growing within even-aged monospecific stands in central Canada. Deploying a block cross-validation-like approach in order to reduce serial data dependency and enable predictive performance assessments, species-specific calibration and validation data subsets consisting of cumulative moving average values were systematically generated from the 27,820 jack pine and 11,291 red pine attribute-specific annual ring values. Graphical, correlation, regression and validation analyses were used to specify, parameterize and assess the predictive performance of tertiary-level (ring-disk-tree) hierarchical mixed-effects whole-stem equations for each attribute by species. As a result, the jack pine equations explained 46, 66, 74, 63, 59, 72, 42 and 48% of the variation in Wd, Ma, Me, Co, Wt, Dr, Dt and Sa, respectively. The red pine equations explained slightly higher levels of variation except for Me: 50, 71, 31, 83, 72, 78, 56 and 71% of the variation in Wd, Ma, Me, Co, Wt, Dr, Dt and Sa, respectively. Graphical assessments and statistical metrics related to attribute and species-specific residual error patterns and goodness-of-fit, lack-of-fit and predictive error metrics, revealed an absence of systematic bias, misspecification or aberrant predictive performance. Consequently, the resultant parameterized models were acknowledged as acceptable functional descriptors of the intrinsic spatiotemporal cumulative developmental patterns of the studied end-product fibre attribute determinates, for these two pine species. Although predicted development patterns were similar between the species with the greatest degree of nonlinearity occurring before a cambial age of approximately 30 years, irrespective of attribute, jack pine exhibited a greater degree of nonlinearity in the Wd and Dt developmental trajectories, whereas red pine exhibited a greater degree of nonlinearity in the Ma, Me, Co, Wt, Dr and Sa developmental trajectories. Potential biomechanical linkages underlying the observed attribute distribution patterns, as well as the potential utility of the models in forest management, are also discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Influence of Forest Management on Wood Quality and End-Product Potential)
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