In descending order, by date published.
1/10/2020 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Many softwoods look similar to the naked eye at first; the colors are often similar, maybe light-colored overlaid with tinges of yellow-brown or perhaps a slight pinkish cast. Even the weights of similarly-sized pieces (the densities) might seem similar. There are, however, differences in the wood structure that we can use to separate the various species. Two of the most important characteristics we look at are 1) the presence or absence of resin canals (as discussed previously) and 2) the appearance of the earlywood--latewood transition in annual growth rings.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 14.61 mb
Pages: 6
1/10/2020 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Recognizing that an unidentified sample is a resinous or non-resinous softwood, with either an abrupt or a gradual transition is a good start towards identifying an unknown specimen. The problem is that this information is rarely enough! Other characteristics need to be combined with that data. Some of the things to look out for include characteristic odors, the diameter of the tracheids, and the presence of storage cells. Sometimes the context or original location of the material can be helpful.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 3.34 mb
Pages: 4
1/10/2020 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
As in softwoods, hardwood species identification is accomplished by looking at species-specific combinations of features. Almost all hardwood species (including all of those from North America) contain vessels which appear as holes (pores) on wood cross-sections; hardwood species without vessels are unlikely to be encountered in North America. Those species are more commonly found in the southern hemisphere and are rarely sold as commercial species.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 14.73 mb
Pages: 8
1/10/2020 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
There is a strong correlation between wood density and mechanical properties, and this is true for both softwood and hardwood species. Density and strength properties can vary even within species due to different growth conditions.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 3.17 mb
Pages: 4
8/31/2018 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Drying air-dried hardwood lumber to the finished moisture content (MC) requires care and attention, but it's not difficult. This document describes the steps a kiln operator should follow to get the best lumber from his/her air-dried material. It will probably be most useful for operators of small kilns, but the principles are the same regardless of kiln size or type of kiln.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 2.40 mb
Pages: 12
8/31/2018 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Step-by-step procedures so you can keep your dry kiln operation well-organized and running properly.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 2.90 mb
Pages: 12
4/6/2017 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Green lumber is used mostly for local uses such as fence boards, barn siding and so forth. Lumber that will be glued or finished has to be dried, however, and that includes just about all the higher-value wood products used indoors such as flooring, furniture, wall paneling, cutting boards and so forth. Dry lumber can be used for more types of products and has greater marketability. Dry lumber is also worth more than green lumber.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 11.03 mb
Pages: 114
3/4/2016 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
As of 2014, railroads were purchasing in the neighborhood of 25 million wooden ties each year, so the railroad tie industry can be a reliable market for loggers and sawmillers. Prices for green ties are viewed as good compared to lower-grade lumber, though actual market prices depend on immediate demand, competing lumber prices, distance from the seller to the treating plant, and tie quality and species. If you're a logger reading this article, you'll learn to make better decisions about how to select trees and logs for crossties and switch ties, and you'll be able to buck them so that they're worth more money overall.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 6.00 mb
Pages: 9
12/21/2015 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Knowing how to identify unknown pieces of wood using a hand lens is the only skill you will need for most situations---and that's the purpose behind most of this manual. A section at the end about how to identify wood using a microscope is available should you want to develop your wood identification expertise.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 1.00 mb
Pages: 4
12/21/2015 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Wood samples need to be identified for all sorts of reasons, and they come in all shapes, sizes and conditions. I've received samples that were sound, samples that were waterlogged, samples that were rotted or otherwise degraded, painted samples, furniture samples, even samples containing wood preservatives. Most of the samples I receive have a North American origin, but I also receive pieces from art museums and antique dealers that can originate from just about anywhere. This sometimes means that identifying the sample by a common name alone doesn't provide enough information.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 1.98 mb
Pages: 8
12/21/2015 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Softwood and hardwood trees are made up of different types of cells. With just a little magnification, it's easy to see that softwood growth rings look different from hardwood growth rings. Additionally, growth rings don't look the same for all of the trees, and the growth ring appearance is one of the things we will look at to identify wood.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 2.40 mb
Pages: 4
12/21/2015 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Frequently you need to be able to observe wood cells from a particular perspective, and you will need to know where to look for different features on your sample. It's also very helpful to develop a kind of "visual vocabulary" that will let you match a term with a corresponding mental image, and the information in this chapter will start you on your way.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 1.50 mb
Pages: 3
12/21/2015 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Just making the separation between softwoods and hardwoods doesn't help much in identifying wood species; that would be sort of like identifying children by their hair color. Let's look at the next level of wood features that you need to be able to recognize.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 4.20 mb
Pages: 6
4/20/2009 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
This booklet was written to help Senior 4-H'ers preparing for the National 4-H Forestry competition held each year in Jackson's Mill, West Virginia. Flash cards and links to various external websites about individual insects' appearance and habitats are posted on the website for the national competition (http://www.aces.edu/n4hfi/page4.html), but no single document is available that summarizes the information that students need when they're beginning their studies. This booklet has been written to fill that gap.
Departments: 4-H Programs, Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: 4-H Natural Science: Entomology and Bees (4DC series)
Size: 3 kb
Pages:
3/14/2008 (new)
Authors: Terry Conners
Several types of structural wooden members are used in railroad track and related structures, but this article focuses on crossties--which are used to hold track in place at a de?ned gauge, or distance between rails--and their production and grading. This article describes what a good piece of wood looks like and how to recognize crossties with problems before they are placed in track. Understanding what tie inspectors look for will help tie producers make better ties and achieve a lower rate of tie rejection.
Departments: Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 1.26 mb
Pages: 20
12/14/2006 (minor revision)
Authors: Tom Barnes, Terry Conners, Deborah Hill, Jeff Stringer, Billy Thomas
Departments: Family and Consumer Sciences, Forestry and Natural Resources
Series: Forestry and Natural Resources (FOR series)
Size: 250 kb
Pages: 2
