New Zealand Journal of Forestry (2015) 59(4): 2
©New Zealand Institute of Forestry

Editorial
Wood quality

Chris Goulding



Radiata pine has variously been described as a first-class, second-rate timber. Its wood qualities do not match those of many other tree species, but not for nothing does it now occupy 90 per cent of the area of New Zealand’s intensively-managed planted forests. The wood can be pulped, made into fibre-board, peeled for plywood or laminated veneer lumber, and used for building construction. Its timber can readily be kilndried, nailed, treated, machined, finger-jointed and heat/chemically modified. At the same time the wood qualities vary greatly – within a tree, between trees from the same stand, and between stands and forests across the country.
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