Abstract:
This study was designed to find out how the quality of teak wood changes
with growth rates. Based on the diameter at breast height and total tree
height, three crown classes namely, suppressed, co-dominant and dominant
were selectedfrom a 45-year-old state Tectona grandis Lf (teak) plantation
at Malsiripura, Kurunegala, Sri Lanka. Three trees from each crown class
were studied. Sample disks were extracted at breast height from each tree, to
measure ring width whose values indicate growth rate and specific gravity
of each ring. Percentage heartwood was also measured. Mean ring width
and mean specific gravity values for each crown class were analyzed. Results
indicated that there is no relationship between growth rate and specific gravity.
Hence, fast growth rates in shorter rotations is unlikely to reduce specific
gravity in teak. Woodproperty patterns werefound similar between the crown
classes, indicating that these trends are inherent to teak. It was also found
that the percentage heartwood is positively affected by growth rate.
