Abstract
IT is now generally recognized that the type of extractives present in certain woods accounts for practically all the decay resistance, and physical factors are of little significance. It has been repeatedly observed in tests of resistance to natural decay that the inner heartwood of many woods is less resistant to decay than the outer heartwood. This is particularly true in the lower trunk of larger and older trees. Moreover, it is a common observation that a hollow tree or log has sustained most loss of wood in the central portion of the trunk. The phenomenon of decreasing resistance to decay with ageing of the wood in the tree occurs in many species, so necessarily there will be a variety of chemical changes involved.
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References
Anderson, A. B., Zavarin, E., and Scheffer, T. C., Nature, 181, 1275 (1958).
Zavarin, E., J. Org. Chem., 23, 1198, 1264 (1958).
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ANDERSON, A., SCHEFFER, T. Chemistry of Decay of Heartwood on Ageing in Incense Cedar (Librocedrus decurrens Torrey). Nature 194, 410 (1962). https://doi.org/10.1038/194410a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/194410a0
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