Journal article
Wood density and its radial variation in six canopy tree species differing in shade-tolerance in western Thailand
CA Nock, D Geihofer, M Grabner, PJ Baker, S Bunyavejchewin, P Hietz
Annals of Botany | Published : 2009
DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcp118
Abstract
Background and AimsWood density is a key variable for understanding life history strategies in tropical trees. Differences in wood density and its radial variation were related to the shade-tolerance of six canopy tree species in seasonally dry tropical forest in Thailand. In addition, using tree ring measurements, the influence of tree size, age and annual increment on radial density gradients was analysed.MethodsWood density was determined from tree cores using X-ray densitometry. X-ray films were digitized and images were measured, resulting in a continuous density profile for each sample. Mixed models were then developed to analyse differences in average wood density and in radial gradie..
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Awarded by Austrian Science Fund
Funding Acknowledgements
We thank Manop Keawfoo and the staff of HKK for help in the field. We also acknowledge the Thai Royal Forest Department and the Center for Tropical Forest Science of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute for establishing the 50-ha plot. This work was supported by a grant from the Austrian Science Foundation (Grant P19507-B17). The authors would also like to thank S. C. Thomas and D. G. Woolford for suggestions on statistical approaches and to D. Metcalfe and J. Norghauer for helpful comments. Funding to pay the Open Access publication charges for this article was provided by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF).