AN EVALUATION OF WOOD PROPERTIES OF Pinus Caribeae (MORELET) IN OLUWA FOREST RESERVE, ONDO STATE, NIGERIA

This paper examines the effects of within tree variation on wood density, ring width and anisotropic shrinkage of Pinus caribeae (Morelet) among tree partitions in Oluwa pine plantation. Five 15-year old Pinus caribeae (Morelet) in three partitions were randomly selected from the plantation and felled for the study. Wood samples were prepared from five height levels, 10%, 30%, 50%, 70 % and 90 % and also among the wood type; inner wood, middle wood and outer wood positions of the stem according to standard procedures. The result showed the wood is dense, dimensionally stable with an average density of 0.55g/cm3. Among three partitions, ring width variation had a marked effect on wood density and anisotropic shrinkage of the wood (p < 0.05). A strong positive correlation was established between density and shrinkage properties. The relationship between ring width and anisotropic shrinkage was positive. Thus, it may be possible to use wood density and grain orientation biometry to predict anisotropic shrinkage of the wood and its dimensional stability