Heartwood, sapwood and bark content, and wood dry density of young and mature teak (Tectona grandis) trees grown in Costa Rica

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the heartwood, sapwood and bark content, and wood dry density in young and mature teak (Tectona grandis) trees. For this, 17 plantations were selected from 11 sites representing different climatic conditions and plantation densities (156 to 1600 trees ha–1, and line planting). From these plantations, a total of 87 trees with ages between 5 and 47 years were felled for stem analysis. The highest heartwood proportion of stem volume (over bark) was 61% and the lowest 0.4%. The sapwood proportion ranged between 24 and 72%, while bark represented from 14 to 37% of the total volume. Heartwood proportion was significantly different (P < 0.05) among climatic zones: ‘wet’ sites producing less heartwood than ‘dry’ sites. Stem diameter (under bark) and heartwood diameter at different stem heights differed among sample trees, even when plotted in relative values to avoid dependency with stem size. Dry density was statistically different between 8-year-old trees or younger and 47-year-old trees, and between line planting trees and 13-year-old trees or younger, but did not differ statistically between line planting trees and mature trees. No significant differences were found between climatic zones or between different stand densities. Dry density values for T. grandis plantations in Costa Rica are similar to those reported elsewhere.