2012 the year of collecting - International Wood Collectors Society

World of Wood 

JOURNAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL WOOD COLLECTORS SOCIETY 

Volume 65, Number 3 May/June 2012 

2012 the year of collecting 

May/June 2012 World of Wood 

1

Contents 

The President’s Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

A new future for wood identification . . . 4 

... sorting through the off-cuts . . . . . . . . . . . 6 

Botanists say Acacia stays in Australia . . . . 7 

African Trees and Wood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 

IWCS South African Conference . . . . . . . . . 10 

ASDA Forest Products Laboratory 

Centennial Celebration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 

Vessel/pore types for wood identification . 14 

Dealing with rising expenditure in 

producing specimens. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 

A Favorite Wood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 

Honours Bestowed upon Nelis Mourik . . . 20 

Dyewoods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 

Shrubwoods of the World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 

Before chain saws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 

The Tree of Gernika . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 

Before chain saws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 

Member’s Listings and Requests . . . . . . . . 27 

Australian Woods No 33 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 

Wood Specimen Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 

Wood Meets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 

Book Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 

World of Wood 

Vol. 65, No. 3 ISSN 1068-7300 May/June 2012 

The International Wood Collectors Society, founded in 1947, is a non-profit society advancing information on wood. 

Editor Morris Lake 

22 Julia St, Highgate Hill, Q 4101 

AUSTRALIA 

Phone: From overseas: 061 07 3844 1246 

Within Australia: (07) 3844 1246 

E-mail: lake.mnr@bigpond.com 

Associate Editors 

Ken Bassett — Washington, USA. 

Richard Crow — Cornwall, England. 

Alan Curtis — Oregon, USA. 

Ron DeWitt — New York, USA. 

David Greve — Queensland, Australia. 

Fred Holder — Washington, USA. 

Willem Hurkmans — Overijssel, Netherlands. 

Ernie Ives — Suffolk, England. 

Barry and Danielle James — South Africa. 

David Mouat — California, USA. 

Nelis Mourik— South Holland, Netherlands. 

Susan Stamm — Wisconsin, USA. 

Worldwide web site: http://www.woodcollectors.org 

Officers and Trustees 

President: Garry Roux, Illinois, USA. 

Vice President: Melvin Talley, Indiana, USA. 

President-elect: Gary Gronborg, Missouri, USA. 

Secretary-Treasurer: Bill & Myrtle Cockrell, Indiana, USA. 

Publications Chairman: Chuck Holder, Alberta, Canada. 

Endowment Fund Chairman: Allen Nemetz, Connecticut, USA. 

Archivist: Dennis Wilson, Michigan, USA 

Past President: Art Lee, Maryland, USA. 

Regional Trustees 

AustralAsia (2010-2013): Brian Davis, Queensland, Australia. 

Canada (2009-2012): Robert Ritchie, Ontario, Canada. 

EuroAfrica (2010-2013): Willem Hurkmans, Overijssel, Netherlands. 

UK (2010-2012): Bob Goddard, United Kingdom. 

USA Central (2009-2012): Stan King, Missouri, USA. 

USA Great Lakes (2011-2014): John Burris, Indiana, USA. 

USA NE (2009-2012): Ron DeWitt, New York, USA. 

USA NW (2010-2013): Alan Curtis, Oregon, USA. 

USA SE (2010-2013): Tom Kinney, Florida, USA. 

USA SW (2011-2014): Dave Mouat, California, USA. 

Committee Chairs and Service Providers 

All-Mail Auction: Art Brennan, Pennsylvania, USA. 

Craft Sales: Allan Schwindt, Washington, USA. 

Membership Committee: Melvin Talley, Indiana, USA. 

New-member Correspondent: Bill Cockrell, Indiana, USA. 

Nominations Committee: Art Lee, Maryland, USA. 

Corporate Membership: Daryle Layton, Idaho, USA. 

Student Membership: Les Campbell, Utah, USA. 

Membership Directory: Susan Stamm, Wisconsin, USA. 

Website Committee: Art Lee, Maryland, USA. 

Webmaster: Erlene Tarleton, California, USA. 

Wood Import Permits: Alan Curtis, Oregon, USA. 

Wood Specimen Kits: Gary Green, Indiana, USA. 

The World of Wood is published bimonthly by the International Wood Collectors 

Society (IWCS). IWCS is devoted to distributing information on collecting wood, 

correctly identifying and naming wood specimens, and using wood in creative crafts. 

Contributions for publication may be educational, scientific, technical or of general 

interest to members and relevant to the purposes of the Society. Papers may be 

refereed by an Editorial Board of technically trained members. The phrases ‘World of 

Wood’, ‘ IWCS Wood Data Sheet’ and all materials contained herein are © Copyright 

protected by the International Wood Collectors Society. Address requests to reprint 

material to the Editor. 

The World of Wood is published as a benefit to members of the IWCS, a non-profit 

organization of botanists, dendrologists, and other scientists, technologists, wood 

collectors, hobbyists and crafts people for mutual assistance and reciprocation. 

Membership rates for individuals or couples worldwide are: US$35 annually, US$90 

for 3 years, US$125 for 5 years and US$500 for life membership. Student Membership 

is US$15 per year. Corporate Membership US$125 annually, US$325 for 3 years, 

US$450 for 5 years. Applications are available from the Secretary-Treasurer or 

from the IWCS website. Dues and address changes also should be directed to the 

Secretary-Treasurer. 

We encourage your membership in our unique international organization. 

Cover photographs Background: Curly grain Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii). 

Centre: End grain macrophotographs taken by Jean-Claude Cerre. See pages 4 and 5. 

2 World of Wood May/June 2012

The President’s Message 

Greetings Everyone! 

Wow, it is hard to believe this 

is my last President’s message. 

This is the last chance for me 

to get on my soapbox and try 

to express what this organization 

does. Where else can you 

find out what is happening in 

the World of Wood for $35.00 a 

year? That alone is worth your 

dues. And, if you attend only 

one meeting, you can save 10 

times that amount on wood 

and crafts that are available for 

sale: wood that you cannot find 

at any store and crafts or gifts or 

your personal collection. These 

unique items are only available 

because of the generosity of the 

members of this organization. 

In addition the camaraderie and 

friendships are priceless. 

Over the last four years I have 

talked a lot about involvement. 

I did that because IWCS needs 

your help. In the last message, 

I told you there is an old story 

about someone, anybody and 

nobody and I would look it 

up. Well my mind is not what 

it was when I heard this thirty 

from Garry Roux 

years ago. The story is about 

everybody, somebody, anybody 

and nobody. I missed 

the title a little bit, but not 

by much, but the story is the 

same as it was back then and 

still so true. Here it is: 

This is a little story about 

four people named Everybody, 

Somebody, Anybody, 

and Nobody. There was an 

important job to be done 

and Everybody was sure 

that Somebody would do 

it. Anybody could have done it, 

but Nobody did it. Somebody 

got angry about that because it 

was Everybody’s job. Everybody 

thought that Anybody could do it, 

but Nobody realized that Everybody 

wouldn’t do it. It ended up 

that Everybody blamed Somebody 

when Nobody did what Anybody 

could have done. 

Please read that a couple of times. 

There are offices that need filled in 

this organization, is Everybody going 

to do them? 

Soon you will have the opportunity 

to attend the 2012 Annual meeting, 

A note for contributors 

Please submit articles as you complete them. 

I can then place them into future editions so each edition will present a 

balance of topics. If possible I will advise when they will appear. 

Last minute changes before: 

24 June for the July/August 2012 

An important notice 

Due to changes caused by the provision of fibre cable to our area we 

have a new E-mail address. Please submit copy for inclusion in future 

issues to: lake.mnr@bigpond.com 


“65th anniversary”. Please consider 

what you can do to help keep our 

organisation vital and strong. We 

would love to see you in Springfield. 

I will get off of my soapbox now for 

the last time. 

In closing this message I want to say 

“Thank you”. It has been a lot of fun. 

Shelly and I met a lot of members and 

guests. We made a lot of new friends 

and we lost a few very good friends, 

but they will never be forgotten by us. 

We received some very special gifts 

that we will always cherish. I want to 

thank everyone who stepped up and 

helped, you guys and gals are priceless. 

To my board and mentors could 

not have done it without you. My 

biggest “THANK YOU” goes to Shelly 

and Brianna for all their time, support, 

understanding and patience. Good 

luck to the new officers. See you in 

Springfield; make it a New Beginning 

For You Or Someone Else. 

3

A new future for wood identification 

When Robin and I reluctantly left 

Nevers, France, after our very 

recent stay with Jean-Claude 

Cerre, we left with even greater 

admiration for what this very 

talented man has achieved. We 

also left with the fresh realisation 

of the enormous potential yet 

to flow from the work Jean- 

Claude is doing—and that’s no 

exaggeration. Jean-Claude‘s work 

has the potential to advance and 

revolutionise the process of wood 

identification on a world-wide 

basis—and I will endeavour to 

bring you up to date with this 

technology in this article—so fasten 

your seatbelts, because you are in 

for an exciting story. 

For those not aware of what Jean- 

Claude has been doing over the 

last few years, it could be a good 

idea to look back to the September/ 

October, 2009, January/February, 

and the March/ April, 2010 issues 

of the World of Wood. In so doing 

you will catch up with what is 

now known as the Cerre System 

for Macrophotography of Wood. 

This system is now being used, 

or considered by several Wood 

Laboratories in Europe—and the 

number is set to grow. 

Since his initial work, Jean-Claude 

has made several important 

upgrades to his system, and has 

gained more experience with the 

technique. But this is not the most 

important aspect, despite the fact 

that he can now produce very 

higher quality macrophotographs 

at larger magnifications. With 

his recent upgrade he has started 

again with photographing species 

and now has around 1500 species 

photographs in his system. 

I think at this point, in order to 

better understand the significance 

of what Jean-Claude is doing, we 

need to seek some answers to a few 

very important questions. 

by Morris Lake #7634 L 

Jean-Claude Cerre and 

the author at the Centre 

of Excellence in Wood 

Identification in Nevers, 

France. 

Why is the Cerre System of 

Macrophotography of wood so 

important? 

There are a number of reasons. 

• Firstly it is a quicker and more 

reliable method of obtaining a 

standard macrophotograph. 

• Secondly, it is possible to obtain a 

high quality digital, macro image 

of any wood specimen, whether 

the wood be hard, soft, greasy, 

or whatever its texture. 

• Thirdly, it provides an authentic 

colour image portraying all of 

the features of the wood needed for 

identification. 

But most importantly it presents 

the opportunity to establish a data 

base which will make possible the 

identification of all species of wood on 

this planet—something not possible 

today—anywhere. 

What therefore are the prospects 

for identification in the future? 

It is proposed that by using wood 

macrophotography—particularly end 

grain macrophotography—and using 

computer pattern recognition it will be 

possible to identify any given wood 

specimen. 

But firstly, Why is this not possible 

with the use of botanic keys, as used 

up until now? 

The answer to that is firstly that we do 

not have sufficient keys to separate all 

the species. Using the keys we have it 

may be possible to identify most of the 

‘commercial woods’ used in the world 

today. But once you go outside the 

commercial species, you simply run 

out of the ability to visually detect 

differences. Admittedly, given a 

lifetime of devoting little else to 

one’s time, there are individuals in 

this world who can identify large 

numbers of species—but mostly, if 

you ask them how they know that 

its such-and-such a wood, they 

really can’t tell you. It just is ! The 

pattern recognition learned by their 

brain simply identifies the species. 

I estimate there are somewhere 

between 17-20,000 wood producing 

species, down to craft sizes in the 

world. These are made up roughly 

as follows: Australia 5,300, Sth 

America 3,500, Africa 3,000, SE Asia 

3,000, USA 670, Europe 70, UK 50 

and China 1,000—the remaining 

islands etc. 3,000. 

How many species can we identify 

scientifically? 

The current science of identifying 

Australian species of wood stands 

at 380 species, which represents 

around 7% of all species in Australia. 

The northern hemisphere countries 

fare a bit better, but mostly because 

of their smaller number of species. 

Sth America and SE Asia, fare about 

the same as Australia. And China— 

who knows. 

From the point of view of an 

organisation such as the IWCS, 

where we are gathering all and 

sundry species we really are at a 

loss without having identified the 

species botanically before obtaining 

a wood specimen—there is much to 

be done. 


What is computer pattern 

recognition? 

Computer pattern recognition is 

a process which uses a ‘search 

engine’ to recognise similar data 

stored on a computer. These 

search engines are the basis for 

most computer search systems that 

we simply take for granted today. 

When we look for something on 

Google we use a search engine that 

looks for and identifies words and 

phrases. When we pass through 

a border check and look into a 

camera, it recognises our eye 

pattern, or face image and lets us 

through. Some of these systems 

are very simply, while others can 

be very complex. 

There are many systems in use 

today which are more sophisticated 

and can pick out key objects and 

construct digital representations. 

These are then matched to objects 

in another image, enabling 

identification to take place. 

One company in California 

called Evolution Robotics have 

developed systems that extract 

key features from an object, thus 

creating a ‘signature’ for it which 

can then be matched to a data base 

and the reference image. They 

can match the ‘signature’ even 

if viewed from a different angle 

or partly obscured. This system 

takes far less computing power—so 

little in fact that a cellphone can be 

used to extract a match. Naturally 

enough, however, the ability of such 

a search engine to recognise different 

‘signatures’ depends on the size of 

the data base. So this is where the 

significance of Jean-Claude’s work 

become so important to the success of 

the system. 


So, how does this add up as 

a future system for wood 


• Firstly, set up a data base 

containing as many of the world’s 

wood species as possible. It may 

contain as many variations of 

individual species as possible at 

varying magnifications. 

• The data base may be located in 

one place, or may be part of a number 

of linked sites throughout the world 

forming a network—whatever is 

found to be the most practical and 

accessible. 

• Individuals requiring to identify a 

specimen, can prepare an end grain 

of any unknown wood, and using a 

cellphone, photograph that end grain 

and send it downline to the search 

site. 

• The search site will process the 

image, establish a signature, and 

within seconds provide a match. If 

there is no match then it may provide 

an alternative, or at least a genus 


Now this may not be exactly as it will 

pan out, but all the elements for such 

a system of identification are there. It 

really is up to us to make it happen. 

5

...sorting through the off-cuts 

Robin and I have just returned 

from a 5 week trip to Europe, not 

all of which had to do with wood. 

In fact during the first 10 days 

we performed with our Brisbane 

community choir, Chordiality, at 

the Australian Choral Festival in 

Southwark Cathedral, London, 

then at Caerphilly, Wales and 

Great Dunmow, Essex. It was a 

real blast and very enjoyable. 

But we soon headed across the 

Channel for three very enjoyable 

stays with Jean-Claude Cerre in 

France, Jose-Miguel and Meron 

Elosegui, and Manuel Soler in 

two different parts of Spain. We 

really experienced magnificent 

hospitality. Thank you all. 

I really want to make an important 

comment here. We have travelled 

overseas fairly frequently in the 

past, but for this trip we accepted 

the invitations of fellow IWCS 

members to stay with them in 

their respective countries. The 

difference to our tour was striking, 

because we visited many more 

interesting places that were 

relevant to our interests on this 

trip, and having someone who 

is culturally atuned to what you 

see, makes a huge difference 

overall. In the IWCS Membership 

Directory many members list 

themselves as being prepared to 

host other members—and I’m 

sure there are many more who 

would be willing to do the same, 

but have not indicated that. If you 

are travelling, I encourage you 

to consider looking up members 

who are in that area, and make 

contact. Yes, there were some 

language difficulties, but, with a 

little patience, we were usually 

able to understand each other—we 

are an international organisation 

and inter-nation contacts can only 

make us stronger. Give it a try. 

So having been away when I 

should have been getting this copy 

of the World of Wood to the printer, 

I apologise for this issue being a 

little late in arriving—just how late 

will depend on how much time the 

printer can make up for me. Thanks 

Terry. 

The other thing is that you may 

find some differences in layout in 

this issue. This is not intentional, 

it’s because my computer crashed 

before we went away, and with the 

new computer and updated systems, 

I have not been able to use Page 

Maker, the progressively updated 

publishing program that I have used 

since the early 1990, when desktop 

publishing was first invented. I have 

had to install InDesign to replace it. 

Unfortunately, this has necessitated a 

steep learning curve in the last week 

or so. I apologise for the differences 

and hope they will not put you 

off reading the magazine. I guess 

the computer design people have 

to make money somehow, so they 

simply make it impossible to stay in 

the one place for very long before 

you have to spend megabucks to 

keep doing what you want to—that’s 

progress I guess. 

There is, however, one serious 

subject that I want to raise and that 

is the position of Editor for the World 

of Wood. I have spoken to Chuck 

Holder, Publications Chairman, and 

it has now been accepted that I am 

seeking a replacement to edit and 

produce the World of Wood, with a 

possible transition date some time 

around the new year. 

It is with reluctance that I have 

chosen this path because writing and 

producing material for educational 

and professional interest is in my 

blood. This doesn’t mean I am about 

to stop contributing. Far from it. I 

will continue contributing material 

for publication—that also is what 

keeps the blood flowing through 

my veins. In fact I have been doing 

some rough calculations in the last 

week, and as close as I can estimate, 

in the past two decades, during my 

time as a Technical Publications 

Officer for a state-wide agribusiness 

service, and since my retirement in 

by Morris Lake #7534L 

1998, I have produced and published 

around 450 books, magazines and 

other publications, totalling around 

half a million copies distributed to 

readers. Roughly a third of these I 

have either authored of co-authored— 

so I am not one for sitting around and 

waiting for the train to arrive—I have 

usually been up there somewhere in 

the driver’s cabin—and loved the ride 

enormously. But, there comes a time 

when the baton needs to be handed 

over. In my case I need to take a back 

seat away from the regular routine of 

production, which is what is involved 

in the position of Editor. 

I have an extensive knowledge 

of the role of the written word in 

communication and of the publishing 

process and will be available for a 

suitable transition period to help 

whoever wants to fill the position, so 

that the World of Wood can continue to 

be a valuable tool for informing and 

educating members. 

I believe the World of Wood has an 

assured future, as does IWCS, and 

there is some pretty exciting stuff 

happening at the moment within the 

ranks of IWCS. And there is a constant 

need to influence new members to 

join. 

During our visit to Spain, we visited 

the Institute of Wood Technology in 

San Sabastian, Spain and signed up 

the instution to membership. This 

is a very viable woodwork training 

institute and is developing a wood 

identification section and a wood 

collection. They are also interested 

in helping in the producion of a 

Spanish translation of the World of 

Wood, which could possibly appear 

on the IWCS website some time in the 

future. This will encourage Spanishspeaking 

membership throught the 

world. There is much to do, and so 

much potential for this organisation 

to continue to flourish. Since its 

founding day, IWCS has been up-front 

in the wood identification world, so 

if you are interested in the Editor’s 

position, contact myself or Chuck. 

Happy collecting. 


Botanists say Acacia stays in Australia 

The following article is composed from 

an ABC interview with Kevin Thiele, 

Curator, Western Australian Herbarium, 

conducted during the International 

Botanical Congress meeting in 

Melbourne where decisions were made 

regarding the genus Acacia. 

The outcome in Melbourne decided 

that this genus name now resides 

with the Australian Acacias, while 

those in Africa and America will 

need to be given new names. 

The history behind the decision 

For many decades there has been a 

bitter international dispute over the 

genus Acacia, which, up until now, 

contained 1,500 species, and was one 

of the largest genera of flowering 

plants in the world. 

However, individuals are found 

throughout much of the warmer 

parts of the world, in Australia, 

India, Africa and the neo-tropics, 

America, and Central America, and 

since the 1980s, botanical researchers 

have realised that this huge genus 

is actually five separate groups of 

plants which aren’t all that closely 

related. So what was once a single 

genus needed to be split into five. 

Normally the rules by which plants 

are named states that the group that 

includes the type species retains the 

name Acacia and every other group 

needs a new name. 

The type species in this case is 

Acacia nilotica, which occurs in 

Africa and throughout India. This 

group however is a fairly small 

one, containing about 150 species. 

Australia however, is the hotspot 

for the Acacia, with over 1,000 of the 

1,500 species in the old genus. The 

Australian group however, does not 

include the type because of course 

they were discovered after Acacia 

was named in the mid-18th century. 

So under the strict application of the 

rules, all of those species needed to 

be renamed, and the name that was 

available in Australia was a genus 

called Racosperma. This meant that 


the national emblem for Australian, 

the one giving its colours to the 

Olympic green and gold, would 

become Racosperma pycnanthum, the 

golden wattle. 

Australian botanists eight years ago 

made a special application under 

the rules to move the type species of 

Acacia to an Australian species, Acacia 

penninervis. That would mean that 

the Australians could retain the name 

Acacia but the Africans would then 

need to change. And not surprisingly 

that has been a controversial move. 

Acacia is iconic in both Australia and 

Africa. Most of Australia is dominated 

by Acacia, so it is an important genus, 

it’s iconic for our national flower, 

etc.,etc.. 

But Acacia appears widely in African 

culture as well, where the flat-topped 

thorn trees in the Serengeti that are 

browsed by giraffes, many of those 

are Acacias. So African botanists were 

very upset by this proposal, and there 

has been a continuing contest since 

that proposal. 

The last congress was six years ago 

in Vienna, and that meeting ratified a 

decision to move the type to Australia. 

However, there were some issues with 

the vote that occurred in Vienna which 

have been challenged by botanists 

by Eugene Dimitriadis #4686 HL 

since then. There has therefore 

been considerable discussion about 

whether the process that happened 

in Vienna was properly conducted. 

The Melbourne meeting endorsed 

the Vienna decision. So the type of 

Acacia is now Australian, Australia 

uses the name, and the African and 

American Acacias need another 

name. One which is in existence is 

Vachelia, but there are some other 

possible names which could be 

more acceptable to general users 

in Africa, such as Afroacacia or 

Acanthacacia, which means spiny 

acacia. 

In any decision like this, many will 

be disappointed, but principally 

we are pleased that we have an 

internationally agreed way of 

naming plants, and that there was 

strong international endorsement 

of the process that we’ve been 

through, and that’s very important. 

It was a clear vote, and importantly 

it was a vote by the world’s 

assembled botanists. The meeting 

was not stacked by the Australians, 

despite it being in Melbourne. 

Call for an Editor - World of Wood 

The Editor of World of Wood, Morris Lake, will retire when 

a suitable replacement can be located. IWCS is therefore 

now calling for applications or expressions of interest from 

anyone interested in the part time, paying position of Editor 

for the IWCS bimonthly journal, World of Wood. Applicants 

must be a member of IWCS or willing to join IWCS and be 

prepared to attend annual meetings of IWCS when and if 

possible. 

Applicants should have experience in editing and 

publishing and a copy of the IWCS Publications Working 

Manual can be supplied by contacting the current Editor 

Morris Lake 

Please forward inquiries or expressions of interest to Chuck 

Holder, Chair, IWCS Publications Committee. 

cdholder@shaw.ca 

7

African trees and wood 

Guibourtia coleosperma (Benth.) J. Léonard 

African rosewood 

This attractive wood has become 

popular in South Africa in recent 

years because of a steady supply 

into the country. The name “African 

rosewood” is misleading as the 

species is not related to the true 

rosewoods (Dalbergia species). 

Synonyms: Copaiba coleosperma 

(Benth.) Kuntze; Copaifera coleosperma 

Benth. 

Other names: Large copalwood, 

Rhodesian copalwood, copalwood, 

Rhodesian mahogany, bastard 

mopane, Suidwes-mopanie, 

Rooisering, Kopalhout, large 

false mopane, groot valsmopanie, 

bastermopanie (South Africa); 

muxibe, mussive, musibi (Angola); 

machibi, muchibi, mchibi, ushibi, 

chacate, chacate encarnado 

(Mozambique); umtshibi, large false 

mopane (Zimbabwe); 

Family: Leguminosae 

The tree 

This medium-sized to large 

evergreen bushveld tree reaches 

a height of 6 - 20m. It has a large, 

rounded and drooping crown 

and a high branching straight 

trunk that produces sound logs 

from which large clear boards can 

be obtained. The bark of large, 

old trees is dark blackish-brown, 

rough and flaky. Young branches 

are conspicuously red. Small, 

creamy-white, star-shaped fragrant 

flowers, about 10 mm in diameter, 

are produced in terminal heads or 

panicles in summer (November 

to March). A tree in full flower is 

very showy. Dark brown woody, 

almost circular pods, 2 to 3 cm 

long, are produced after flowering. 

These split down the middle once 

mature (May to October) to reveal 

a single reddish-brown seed, up to 

10 mm in diameter, covered by a 

conspicuous scarlet aril suspended 

from a slender stalk. Leaves are 

alternate, compound with one set of 

leaflets (3 to10 X 2 to 4 cm) borne 

on short stalks (4 to 7 mm long) and 

are sickle-shaped, dark green and 

hairless. 

Various parts of the tree are used 

for food or medicinal purposes. The 

foliage is eaten by elephants and the 

bright red seed coat attracts starlings 

and parrots which help to distribute 

the seed. Seeds are eaten raw or 

roasted and pounded. This is an 

important staple food of the Kung 

Bushmen who live in isolated areas 

of Botswana Angola and Namibia. 

The aril (seed coat) is oily and 

provides food in times of famine. In 

Botswana and Zambia the aril and 

red skin of the fruit are removed 

with warm water and eaten or made 

into a nourishing drink. The oil is 

also used to stain furniture. The bark 

can be used for tanning or dyeing 

and the oily red aril of the seed 

contains a dye that has been used to 

stain furniture. The root and bark 

have several medicinal uses. 

Distribution 

African rosewood grows in dry 

open woodland and dry forest 

areas of Angola, northern Namibia, 

and northern Botswana, the southwestern 

regions of Zimbabwe and 

Southern, Western and North- 

Western Provinces of Zambia. It 

grows almost exclusively on deep 

Kalahari sand. The species is not 

native to South Africa. 

Leaves, flower and fruit. 

by Stephanie Dyer #9381 

Wood properties 

Logs are generally sound and 

large, clear boards can be obtained 

during processing. The sapwood is 

pale cream to straw-coloured, very 

distinct from the heartwood which 

is pink to red with purplish striping. 

The grain is straight and sometimes 

interlocked. The lustrous wood has 

a fine to moderately fine texture. 

Freshly cut wood has a fragrant 

odour. 

The wood dries fairly well if dried 

slowly, with little tendency to warp. 

Surface checking develops in some 

boards. The timber is stable and 

exhibits a low shrinkage (radial – 2% 

and tangential – 3.24%) from green to 

an oven-dry condition. From green to 

an air-dry condition the shrinkage is 

0.94% (radial) and 1.7% (tangential). 

Testing of the mechanical properties 

of the timber was conducted at the 

South African Forestry Research 

Institute (Otto & Van Vuuren, 1977). 

The mechanical properties of the 

species are listed in Table 1. 

The wood is durable and extremely 

resistant to preservative treatment. 


Woodworking properties 

The wood saws cleanly despite 

its hardness but adequate power 

needed. Tungsten-tipped saw 

teeth are recommended. It works 

easily with hand or power tools. It 

planes easily to a highly lustrous, 

smooth finish. A cutting angle of 

30º is recommended. Pre-boring 

is essential in nailing to avoid 

splitting due to the hardness of 

the timber. It has good gluing 

properties and it can be polished 

and varnished successfully. The 

wood is suitable for turning and 

carving and is not oily. 


Table 1: Mechanical properties of Guibourtia coleosperma 

Density (air dry) kg/m 3 670 (600 – 800) 

Modulus of rupture (MOR) MPa 90 

Modulus of elasticity (MOE) MPa 9709 

Compression parallel to grain (Maximum crushing strength) MPa 50.9 

Hardness load to imbed 11.278 mm sphere to middiameter) N 

Side grain 8775 

End grain 10795 

Shear parallel to grain (Maximum shearing strength) MPa 16.4 

Impact bending (Toughness) Joules/Nm 25.9 

Uses 

African rosewood is a good general 

purpose timber species that is 

suitable for anything from small, 

decorative pieces to large furniture 

and architectural woodwork. 

Recommended uses are: furniture 

and cabinet work, interior trimming, 

joinery, industrial flooring, sleepers, 

decorative veneer, mining and 

turnery. 

Identifying the wood 

The anatomical structure can be 

studied macroscopically in a clean 

cut of the cross section using a 

very sharp knife. When studying 

the cross- or transverse plane with 

the aid of a 10X magnifying tool, 

vessels, rays and parenchyma tissue 

are visible as lighter coloured objects 

in the darker coloured background 

which consists of fibre tissue. Vessels 

are visible as single- or radially 

grouped pores. Some pores may 

seem blocked – these contain gum. 

Rays are visible as fine lines that 

run from the centre of the log to the 

bark. Here, orientation of the sample 

is important to be able to identify 

the different features. Parenchyma 

tissue is visible as terminal bands 

(demarcating growth rings) and 

also as wing-like extensions (aliform 

arrangement) around the pores. 

9

Program 

Monday 6 May 

• Arrival and registration 

• Dinner 

IWCS South African Conference 

Howick, South Africa 

6 -12 May 2013 

Tuesday 7 May 

Full day of conference and demonstrations 

including morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea. 

Wednesday 8 May 

Full day of conference and demonstrations 

including morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea. 

• Gala Dinner 

Thursday 9 May 

• Morning excursion to Benvie Arboretum, site 

of some of South Africa’s Champion Trees. 

• Afternoon excursion to Mistbelt forest and 

Dargle Conservancy. 

Friday 10 May 

Full day excursion to Baynesfield Estate and 

Tala Game Reserve. 

· 

Saturday 11 May: 

Open d for the Midlands Wood Festival where 

local craftsmen display their wares. 

Sunday 12 May 

• Depart. 

Pre and Post Conference Guided Tours 

These tours are organised by African Insight, which is 

a local tour operator Andrew Anderson, who is an ex 

Natal Parks Board colleague and friend of Barry James, 

and used to be the oficer in charge of Wilderness 

Trails in Umfolozi Game Reserve in the early 1990’s. 

Africal Insight has a very strong emphasis on ethical 

and responsible tourism and has much experience in 

dealing with groups. The organisers believe that they 

have the right person to help with the pre and post 

meeting tours. 

Details are also posted on the IWCS website. 

Package for the Hebron Haven Hotel 

• Conference Package which includes full attendance 

plus the Gala Dinner, but does not include 

accommodation. 

Rand 980, or US$ 127.27 each 

• Conference Package with single accommodation 

Rand 4,158, or US$540 each 

• Conference Package with shared accommodation 

(two per room/twin beds) 

Rand 3,058 , or US$ 397.14 each 

• Conference Package with shared accommodation 

(three/room,or double bedroom) 

Rand 2,508, or US$ 325.71 each 

This fee includes breakfast, lunch, and dinner and the use 

of the complex which has many facilities. The centre is air 

conditioned, and or, heated. 

The current exchange rates are: 1 Euro = 10.2 Rand, 

1 US$ = 7.7 Rand, and 1 A$ = 8 Rand. 

A 25% deposit is required if you book before 45 days of your 

expected departure. i.e., before 9 April, and the balance paid 

on the 9 April. If you book after the 9 April, you are required 

to pay the full amount at the time of booking. 

For cancellations, you will be refunded 20% if you cancel 

30days before, i.e., before the 18 April. 

Payment are to be made through African Insights, and should 

be made by bank transfer. Please note that all bank transfer 

fees are for the client’s/agent’s account. 

Their website can be viewed at www.africalinsights.co.za. 

The tours recommended are as follows: 

• 9 -day Cape Town and Garden Route Tour. 

• 8-day Johannesburg - Mapungubwe - Durban Tour. 

• 7-day Lesotho and Drakensberg Tour. 

• 7-day Zululand Tour. 

• 7-day Johannesgurg - Kruger National Park- 

Johannesgurg Tour. 


IWCS South African Conference 

Pre and Post Conference tour operator is Andrew Anderson, owner of African Insight (www.africaninsight.co.za/) ex Natal 

Parks officer in charge of Wilderness Trails in Umfolozi Game Reserve. African Insight has a very strong emphasis on 

ethical and responsible tourism and has much experience in dealing with groups. Contact Andrew or his assistant Kirsty 

Horn, for more information. 

7-DAY JOHANNESBURG – KRUGER NATIONAL PARK – JO’BURG TOUR 

7-DAY LESOTHO & DRAKENSBERG TOUR 

7-DAY ZULULAND TOUR 

8-DAY JOHANNESBURG – MAPUNGUBWE – DURBAN TOUR 

9-DAY CAPE TOWN & GARDEN ROUTE TOUR 


11

USDA Forest Products Laboratory Centennial Celebration 

The United States Department of 

Agriculture (USDA) Forest Products 

Laboratory (FPL) celebrated 

100 years of service in June 2010. 

Since 1910, the centre in Madison, 

WI, has promoted healthy forests 

and sustainable forest management 

while serving as an interdisciplinary 

research facility to solve problems 

for a diverse wood products 

industry FPL was the first institution 

in the world to conduct general 

research on wood and its utilization. 

Friday, June 4, 2010, marked a 

century since FPL first opened its 

doors. On June 23, 2010 the new 

state-of-the-art research facility was 

dedicated and all FPL employees, 

retired FPL staff, and their families 

gathered in the new Centennial 

Research Facility (CRF), including 

former USDA Forest Service Chief 

Dale Bosworth and several retired 

FPL Directors and their families. 

The special ceremony was hosted 

by FPL Director, Dr. Christopher 

Risbrudt. Over 450 visitors, representing 

28 countries attended. 

USDA Forest Service Chief Tom 

Tidwell and representatives from 

leading industry technical associations 

and universities were present. 

The 87,000 square foot center costing 

$38 million was designed as a 

multiple-use laboratory and will 

provide maximum collaboration 

between scientists and outside partners. 

To demonstrate the capabilities 

of the research facility a large 

timber bridge was tested to failure 

at the opening. 

The center was built to Silver 

Certification standards set by the 

Leadership in Energy and Environmental 

Design (LEED) rating 

system developed by the U.S. Green 

Building Council. This will improve 

performance across the most 

important efficiency metrics: energy 

savings, water usage, greenhouse 

gas emissions reduction, improved 

indoor environmental quality, and 

stewardship of resources including 

sensitivity to their impacts. 

The CRF houses three dynamic 

research work units: Engineered 

Composites Sciences; Durability and 

Wood Protection; and the Engineering 

Mechanics and Remote Sensing 

Laboratory. Scientists will be 

able to perform full-scale testing of 

wood-framed buildings, formulate 

new environmentally friendly wood 

preservatives, develop composite 

products in a manufacturing-friendly 

space, and test the durability of wood 

products with a one-of-a-kind weathering 

chamber. 

Engineered Composites Unit 

Composites research focuses on developing 

highly engineered building 

products from low-value materials 

for production of wood- or naturalfiber 

based composites as well as 

wood-plastic composites. The Engineered 

Composites Unit investigates 

the use of naturally renewable woodbased 

materials. This will promote: 

• resource sustainability and recycling, 

• improved forest health by manufacturing 

high-value products from 

low-value resources, 

• improved value, service life, and 

utility to consumers, and 

• improved economic health by promoting 

jobs in forest-dependent rural 

communities. 

by Bob Ross #9420. 

Durability and Wood Protection Unit 

This unit focuses on extending the service 

life of residential and nonresidential buildings 

through proper design and operation; 

developing wood treatments to improve 

durability of wood products without 

adversely affecting the environment; and 

formulating new targeted inhibitors to protect 

wood products in service and prevent 

economic and resource loss from biodeterioration. 

One of the best ways to extend the available 

timber supply is by improving the 

durability of wood in use. Moisture management 

research is a critical component 

for the development of durable, energyefficient 

housing. The Chamber for Analytic 

Research on Wall Assemblies Exposed to 

Simulated Weather (CARWASh), which 

is part of the CRF, is a one-of-a-kind, 

custom-designed moisture testing chamber. 

It permits realistic weather simulation in 

a controlled laboratory setting, including 

simulations of wind-driven rain impinging 

on full-scale wall assemblies. The 16 spray 

nozzles can simulate rainfall from 0.25 to 6 

inches per hour and adjustable nozzles can 

create wind from 2 to 25 mph (gusts up to 

55 mph for up to 5 seconds can be simulated 

by pressurization). Infrared heat lamps 

are used to simulate the sun. 

Use of the CARWASh allows researchers to: 

• program individual tests with weather 

data taken from any global location and set 

tests to run for weeks or months at a time, 

• study wind-driven rain intrusion in walls 

and drying rates after wetting events, 

• test window installations, flashing and 

cladding products, drainage/drying details, 


and water-resistive barrier products, 

• study independent air temperature 

and humidity control on each side of 

a test wall with static or dynamic air 

pressure differences across the wall 

assembly, 

• provide experimental data for 

validation of heat, air, and moisture 

transfer models, and 

• study the effects of air infiltration 

and exfiltration on moisture levels in 

walls. 

Engineering Mechanics and Remote 

Sensing Laboratory (EMRSL) 

In this laboratory, physical and mechanical 

tests are conducted on a wide 

range of materials, building systems, 

and structures—from houses to transportation 

structures. Results inform 

the development of building codes 

and structural design. 

Testing involves samples ranging from 

toothpick-sized to full-sized structural 

beams (50 feet long) made of solid 

wood or combinations of wood fibers, 

plastics, adhesives, and metal. Static 

tests can simulate snow loads or dead 

loads, while dynamic tests simulate 

seismic, fatigue, and wind loads. 

The EMRSL uses desktop-sized testing 

machines, rated from 1 to 10,000 

pounds, and standalone machines, rated 

from 60,000 to 130,000 pounds. A 

strong floor and wall system provides 

researchers the ability to apply loads 

from multiple directions for full-scale 

testing of three-dimensional structures 

such as wood-framed building mockups 

up to 20 feet tall. 

New Publications 

Two special documents were prepared 

and released during the Centennial 

Celebration: a special centennial 

edition of the Wood Handbook—Wood 

as an Engineering Material and Forest 

Products Laboratory 1910-2010, Celebrating 

a Century of Accomplishments. 

Since it was first published in 1935, the 

Wood Handbook has served as a reference 

document for a wide variety of 

users—from the general public to architects 

and design engineers who use 

wood in highly engineered structures. 

This book is the singular, most widely 

used document produced by FPL and 

one of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 

most widely used publications. 

Throughout its revisions, the Wood 

Handbook--Wood as an Engineering 

Material has continued to serve as the 

primary reference tool for the general 

public, trade associations, industry 

personnel, research scientists, and others 

who need basic information on the 

properties and use of wood. 

A revised, special Centennial Edition 

of the Wood Handbook was produced 

as part of FPL’s Centennial Celebration 

and released in June 2010. Updated 

to include new developments 

in the field of wood utilization, this 

edition also contained information on 

the newer wood preservative treatments, 

copper napthenate and zinc 

napthenate, as well as information on 

codes and standards. Several significant 

additions included: 

• a chapter on the importance of wood 

as an environmentally responsible, 

sustainable material, 

• micrographs of cross sections of 

hundreds of commercial wood species, 

• references to the most recent research 

on the properties of the wood 

cell wall at the nanoscale, and 

• a chapter on heat-treating and sterilization 

procedures for wood products 

produced from trees killed by invasive 

insect species. 

This comprehensive, document (500+ 

pages) includes thousands of technical 

references. It is available, free of 

charge, from FPL’s website (www.fpl. 

fs.fed.us). Over 200,000 downloads 

of the Centennial Edition, either the 

entire book or individual chapters, 

have been obtained from FPL’s website 

from users in 175 countries. The 

book is also available for purchase in 

hardcopy, with a companion CD version, 

from the Forest Products Society 

(www.forestprod.org). 

Also published in time for the Centennial 

Celebration was Forest Products 

Laboratory 1910–2010, Celebrating a 

Century of Accomplishments. Compiled 

and edited by John W. Koning Jr., 

the 500+ page book includes: concise 

summaries of 65 significant achieve- 


ments of the FPL, with citations to the 

original research reports; a comparison 

of wood utilization in 1910 and in 2010; 

examples of the financial impact of the 

wood products industry on job creation 

and on the American economy; more 

than 500 color and over 300 black and 

white photographs illustrating research 

initiatives and products, forest ecosystems, 

and the FPL facilities over the 

course of a century; three reprinted reports 

that provide the detailed history 

and impact of selected examples of FPL 

research; and a list of the many people 

who have worked at the FPL during its 

100-year history. 

This book is full of surprising and remarkable 

information about the many 

ways that wood products affect daily 

life. Scientists, manufacturers, policymakers, 

and other experts will find it 

an extraordinary reference and history 

of significant accomplishments in 

forest products research. It is available 

for purchase online at www.uwpress. 

wisc.edu/books/4975.htm. 

The Next Century 

After a century of research, the FPL is 

well prepared to face the future and 

will continue to operate as the nation’s 

premier wood research institute and 

leading international technical authority 

on wood science and usage. 

Across the decades, FPL scientists 

have worked to better understand 

the physical properties of wood with 

research topics on timber testing, wood 

preservation, wood-based distillates, 

timber physics, pulp and paper, and 

wood chemistry. Current research 

also focuses on advanced composites, 

advanced structures, forest biorefinery, 

nanontechnology, and woody biomass 

utilization. 

The combination of the state-of-theart 

Centennial Research Facility, the 

dedicated researchers and scientists, 

and the cooperative agreements with 

industry partners will ensure continued 

success throughout the next 100 

years of wood research. 

13

Exploring...Vessel/Pore types for wood identification 

Structural Features of Hardwoods 

Vessels or Pores 

Wood Parenchyma 

Ray Parenchyma 

Fibers 

I. General Description of Vessels / Pores 

In the cross section (transverse section), pores are 

seen as small, round or oval holes in wood. 

On the longitudinal (tangential or radial) surface, 

they appear as small groves or scratches, running 

parallel to the axis of the stem. These are also called 

Vessel lines. 

The arrangement, size, relative number of pores and 

pore contents as seen on the transverse section of 

wood are characteristic of timber species and helps 

in timber identification 

II. Pore / Vessel Identification 

A. Pore arrangement 

1. Ring Porous 

This type of pore arrangement is more commonly 

found in temperate species due to a distinct change 

in the growing season. Pores that are formed during 

the early part of a growing season are distinctly 

larger and fewer than those formed during the 

later part of the same season. This results in a layer 

of fewer larger pores alternating with zones of 

abundant smaller pores. 

These visible rings are called “Annual Rings” 

because the wood is put on at the start of the spring 

growing season and ends in late summer / early fall. 

Examples: oaks (Quercus Spp.), ashes (Fraxinus 

Spp.), elms (Ulmus Spp.), teak (Tectona grandis) 

(Tropical). 

2. Diffuse Porous 

These are pores of fairly uniform size (sometimes 

very small, sometimes very large) distributed evenly 

throughout a layer of wood formed during a single 

growing season. Most (but not all) of the tropical 

timbers have vessels with this type of diffuse-porous 

arrangement. In the tropics, growth is continuous 

over a whole year and therefore, any ring that seems 

to appear is regarded as a “Growth Ring” and not 

an “Annual Ring” since multi-rings may appear in 

one year or one ring in several years. 

Examples: red alder (Alnus rubra), maples (Acer 

Spp.), tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera). Virtually all 

tropical trees are diffuse-porous. Teak is one of the 

exceptions as listed above. 

by Duane Keck #9086 

Information is from: Textbook of Wood Technology, by Panshin & DeZeeuw, Identifying Wood by R. 

Bruce Hoadley and Structure and Identification of Malaya Woods, by P Menon 

3. Semi-Ring-Porous or Semi-Diffuse-Porous 

Woods whose pore diameters very gradually from large in the 

earlywood to much smaller in the latewood with no clear 

separation of the early wood & latewood zones, are described as 

semi-ring-porous or semi-diffuse-porous. 

Example: black walnut, butternut and persimmon. 

B. Pore Size 

Pore sizes vary widely. Some pores are wide or large in diameter 

and are individually distinct to the naked eye. In other woods, the 

pores are very small and not distinct or easily visible to the naked 

eye. 

Pore diameter are measured on the cross section of the wood and 

measured in microns (um ). The measurements are made 

in the tangential direction. 

Classification of Vessel Sizes 

Cross Section View Fine Classification Rough Classification 

(Tangential Direction) 

Up to 25 microns Extremely small 

25 to 50 microns Very small Small 

>50 to 100 microns Moderately small 

>100 to 200 microns Medium sized Medium sized 

>200 to 300 microns Moderately large 

>300 to 400 microns Very large Large 

over 400 microns Extremely large 


Generally for Diffuse-Porous, pore diameter will be 

generally uniform over the growth range. 

For Ring-Porous, the early wood will obviously be a 

larger diameter than the late wood. In many cases the 

late wood pores formed in late spring / early summer will 

be larger than the late wood pores formed in late summer 

/ early fall. 

C. Pore Density 

Pore density is one of the useful features for determining 

wood identification, especially when other structural 

features are similar. 

Examples: In woods like zebrawood (Microberlinia 

brazzavilensis) and wenge (Millettia laurentii), the number 

of pores are characteristically few. 

In woods like black cherry (Prunus serotina) and 

basswood (Tilia americana), the pores are very numerous. 

Pore density is measured as the number of pores per 

square mm (~.040” square area) 

Vessel Number Per Square Millimeter 

Up to 2 per sq.mm Very few 

>2 to 5 per sp.mm Few 

>5 to 10 per sq.mm Moderately few 

>10 to 20 per sq.mm Moderately numerous 

>20 to 40 per sq.mm Numerous 

Over 40 per sq.mm Very numerous 

Unfortunately, a microscope along with a square area 

reticle eye piece is required to make this measurement. 

The best we can do with a hand lens is to make your own 

judgment regarding what you see as a very few thru very 

numerous. 

D. Pore Groupings / Arrangement 

There are approximately 5 general grouping of pores 

that aid in the identification of wood. In ring pores 

wood, these pore grouping would be in the latewood. In 

diffuse-pores woods, these grouping would generally 

cover the whole growth ring 

1. Solitary Pores 

Pores may be scattered about as in single solitary 

element. Solitary pores generally are not touching 

other pores and do not form a set pattern except being 

scattered. Maple pore diameter is about 44 um. (very 

small) 

Example: maple (Acer Spp.). 

2 Pore multiples 

A pore multiple occurs where two or more pores 

(generally not more than 4 in a row) comes in contact 

with one another. Multiples are most commonly 

arranged in radial groups. Sometimes called radial 

multiples because the pores follow long side and follow 

in between ray lines. 

Example: cottonwood (Populus deltoides), jelutong 

(Dyera costulata). 


Since the pore diameter for cottonwood is about 44 um (very 

small) it is very difficult to see the pore multiples with a hand 

lens. The very light color of cottonwood does not help the 

observation. 

The pore diameter of jelutong is about 165 um, (mediansized) 

making it easy to see the pore multiples. 

3 Pore Chains 

A pore chain is like a pore multiple except it is much longer. 

Pore chains also runs in the radial direction alongside and 

in-between rays. 

Example: American holly (Alex opaca). 

The pore diameter of American holly is about 22 um 

(extremely small), to small to see with a hand lens. It is 

measureable and viewable with a 45 x microscope. 

4 Nested Pores (Pore Clusters) 

Nested pores or pore clusters are a group of pores crowded 

together in a round ball. These nested pores are generally 

isolated in the late wood of ring porous woods. 

Examples: Kentucky coffeetree (Gymnocladus dioicus), 

American yellowwood (Cladrastis kentukea) (outer latewood). 

These nested pores sometimes are connected into tangential 

bands with confluent parenchyma. 

Examples: honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos), osage orange 

(Maclura pomifera),red mulberry (Morus rubra). 

5. Wavy Bands (ulmiform / ulmoid) 

Pores arranged in irregular concentric bands that are more 

or less tangential are called Wavy Bands (also referred to as 

ulmiform or ulmoid because this arrangement is a distinctive 

feature of all elms (Ulmus spp). 

Example: elms (Ulmus spp.). 

6. Pore Contents 

Some other features of vessels that have value in wood 

identification are vessel deposits and tyloses. Vessels that are 

no longer active in water conduction frequently become filled 

or plugged with a gummy or white chalky substances which 

blocks the vessel cavity. These are known as vessel deposits. 

Tyloses are bubble like structures that form in the cell cavities 

of vessels of some species. 

Example: Tyloses may be absent or sparse (as in most red 

oaks), variable (as in chestnut and ash), abundant (and in 

most white oaks) or densely packed (as in black locust). 

7. Perforation Types 

The vessels are made up of a group of cells or tissue which 

functions as the sap-conducting system of hardwoods. The 

vessels are compound structures built up of a series of short, 

stumpy, barrel-like cells which are arranged one-over-theother 

to form a continuous pipe-like system. The end walls 

of the individual cells are ruptured to facilitate the passage 

of sap. Then when the vessels are first formed the ends are 

fully enclosed and at a later stage, the end walls of the vessel 

become ruptured and the vessels fuse together end-to-end to 

form a continuous passage for the flow of sap. 

Cont’ over page. 

15

Cont’ from page 15. 

Simple Perforation Plates and Scalariform Perforation 

Plates 

The composite end-walls form where adjoining end 

walls of two vessel elements have matching openings or 

perforations, this perforation is called a perforation plate. 

It is called Simple Perforation Plates if the vessel junction 

is 100% open. It is called Scalariform Perforation Plates if it 

has a multiple slot-like grill-like openings. 

None of the above can be seen with a hand lens. 

Specialized equipment such as a microtome to make 

slides and a high quality and high powered microscope is 

required to make the observation. 

Most of the 3,000 Malaysian woods have simple 

perforations. 

Examples: 

Simple Perforation Plates: maple, American basswood, 

cottonwood, aspen,yellow buckeye and black cherry 

Scalariform Perforation Plate: flowering dogwood, red 

alder, American holly, tuliptree, birch, sweet gum. 

Book Review by Duane Keck # 9086 

Structure and Identification 

Of Malayan Woods. By P.K.B.Menon 

Revised by Ani Sulaiman and Lim Seng Choon, 123 Pages. 

Malayan Forest Records No. 25. Forest Research Institute 

Malaysia. Kepong, 52109 K. Lumpur, Malaysia, April 1993 (The 

book does not have an ISBN Number) 

For any IWCS member that checks Interest # 2 “Wood 

Identification, Wood anatomy, etc,” this book is a must for your 

library. 123 Pages with a size of 9¾” (25 mm) x 6½” (17 mm) 

Malaysia has 3000 tree species which include 677 that achieves a 

diameter of 4 feet at breast height. There are 408 species shipped 

in the international market. 87 are listed in this text. The 10X cross 

section / transverse section photos are generally 2 ½” x 4” (6.5 mm 

x 10 ½ mm) in size (black and white only – no color). 

Microscope features are entirely left out and only features with 

a 10X magnification lens are covered. This limits the scope of 

structural features to strictly lens identification. 

In addition to a very good write up on classification & 

nomenclature of Malaysian timbers, it includes structural feature 

such as growth rings, vessel sizes and density / square mm, wood 

parenchyma types & ray width descriptions. 

This text compares favorably with R. Bruce Hoadley’s text 

of “Identifying Wood” for North American species. Its only 

drawback is that all the photos are black and white. 

It would be great if Africa, Central & South America and Australia 

would have one with a similar format. 


Dealing with rising expenditure in producing specimens 

In Gary Green’s article in the Jan/Feb 

World of Wood determining the cost of 

producing specimens, he meticulously 

computed – fairly and squarely – what 

the price of your typical specimen 

comes to. He’s dead right as far as 

my knowledge goes – I was there 

with Gary. The question that has to be 

asked however is, “What does one do to 

prevent going bankrupt if the yields can’t 

cover the expenditure?” 

I have always advocated the principle 

that, in any non-profit society, the 

benefits and expenditure must be 

shared equally. By this I mean that the 

people who already work the longest 

hours for the benefit of the members 

of their society (usually at the expense 

of social contacts, lawn mowing, club 

visits, going fishing and whatever) 

you should not be faced with 

additional cost. The truth however is 

that this is usually the case. The guys 

who work hardest and put in most 

hours also take a lot of telephone, 

gasoline and other expenditure in 

their stride – just for the love of the 

club they belong to, and that’s in good 

order too! 

Without wanting to become too 

scroungy —well I’ve heard that the 

Dutch have gotten themselves a 

certain reputation— I think there’s 

a very reasonable solution for that. 

Don’t worry, I’m not going to talk 

about raising membership dues! 

What merits some attention is the 

‘good old’ idea of availability and 

demand. Collecting takes effort, and 

the general principle is that wood that 

is easy to get, is cheap; whereas rare 

woods will be expensive and is hard 

to come by. Moreover, trade in many 

rare woods are regulated by the CITES 

rules, which mean that restrictions 

in trade, buying and selling and 

importing and exporting, apply. 

Indiscriminate harvesting in the past 

has left us with a legacy of threatened 

species. They deserve to be protected. 

However, in practice, we don’t think 

about that when buying a specimen of 

rosewood; that we want to add to our 

collections, don’t we? 


So, is there a solution? 

Well, at NEHOSOC, some years 

back, we decided that the price of 

a specimen does not have to be 

uniform—and HCTO, our Belgian 

counterpart, have taken the same 

view. So, the rarest, most sought 

after woods have been priced higher 

than the ‘standard’ specimens. When 

by a stroke of good luck one of our 

members got his hands on a small 

log of Pterocarpus santalinus (red 

sanders) from southern India, which 

presumably, had been imported 

to our country many years ago, 

it was realized that in view of the 

status of this species, it merited a 

higher selling price. The wood was 

bought at a fair price too, and on 

account of its hardness took some 

specialist processing in order to yield 

samples. I could mention several 

other cases. These don’t entail fuel 

cost. However, driving to botanical 

gardens to see what they have there 

(sometimes it’s just plain rotten stuff, 

sometimes your hopes to make good 

are fulfilled) is adding ever more 

to the cost of a specimen. Although 

my car burns up only 1 litre for 

14 kilometres (i.e., about 32 miles 

to the gallon), the price is about 8 

dollars per gallon, so that counts for 

something. 

Those who were at Soest will 

appreciate that the Netherlands 

is about the size of some of your 

larger counties, so it’s a good idea to 

economize on fuel – or compensate 

for it. This I have done in two ways. 

First, I have raised the price of the 

specimens I privately sell, to 2 euros 

for regular samples, and 3 euros for 

scientifically documented/vouchered 

specimens. This will cover part of 

the gasoline bills, and also make 

buyers aware of what goes into a 

specimen. I don’t pretend spending 

an extraordinary amount of time on 

a specimen – there are others who 

are perfectionists and use standards 

I will never live up to. But I uphold 

that my specimens are at least 

well documented and, wherever 

by Willem Hurkmans #8761-L 

possible, reliably identified. And I 

don’t hesitate to correct my views if 

someone else knows better than I do. 

Second, I give the specimens away 

for free. Since the other side of the 

medal is that in case I get lucky 

(which happily does happen often) 

I’m able to offer specimens for 

free – provided people come to 

visit me and take the specimens 

with them. The latter ‘campaign’ I 

have christened ‘Has your (i.e., of 

NEHOSOC) Chairman become a 

Lunatic?’ – we Dutch are scroungy, 

hence this article – so you expect 

to pay for anything. As of now I 

have already become a lunatic on 

4 occasions. The ‘fifth round’ is 

planned for later this year. 

All this notwithstanding, it still 

won’t pay for all the expenses 

incurred. However, I think this 

is a fair and honest way toward 

a slightly more balanced cost 

distribution – the most fanatical 

collectors will pay somewhat 

more and the cost will have been 

alleviated to a certain degree. Of 

course, a hobby is expected to entail 

some cost. But it would be only 

fair if those who profit most by the 

work of others would make some 

contribution toward costs. It will 

remain a labour of love and after 

all it’s great fun doing it. But when 

your wife comments, well you could 

have been using the time to earn 

some money – is that not just as fair? 

I hope this article does not offend 

anyone; in fact, I hope that it will 

stimulate an ongoing discussion. 

All who have read Gary’s What Goes 

Into The Cost Of A Specimen should 

consider which way the process of 

specimen production should go. 

They should also consider CITES 

aspects. And I would recommend 

everyone to take a look at the IUCN 

website (just search using the 

abbreviation IUCN) to appreciate 

how many plant (hence also tree) 

species are threatened. 

17

Derivation of the genus name Populus, 

is from the Latin name for the “Poplar 

trees.” The epithet or species name, 

trichocarpa, is from the Greek for “hairy 

fruit,” a reference to the three-part 

hairy fruits in the seed capsule. The 

common name “black” is from the 

black furrows in the bark. 

The cottonwoods (including the 

poplars and aspens) number about 35 

species worldwide, all in the Northern 

Temperate Zone. The cottonwoods 

are found throughout North America, 

Europe, Asia, and in North Africa. 

There are eight native species, and one 

naturalized in Canada and the U.S., 

four of which extend into Mexico. 

Two additional native species are 

found in Mexico. Numerous cultivated 

variations have been introduced and 

many natural hybrids occur adding 

more than a bit of confusion (and 

occasional disagreement) to the 

botanical classification of this group 

of rather common, undistinguished 

trees. (There are reportedly over 5000 

genotypes of hybrid poplar today, 

most identified by number only.) 

Black cottonwood, Populus trichocarpa, 

also called western balsam poplar, 

California poplar, or balsam 

Bark of mature black cottonwood. 

Ron DeWitt #6037 SU 

Black Cottonwood Populus trichocarpa (Torr.&Gray) 

A Broadleaf Deciduous Hardwood 

Salicaceae - Willow Family 

cottonwood, has a native range 

extending, in the U.S. and Canada, 

from Kodiak Island and Cook Inlet in 

southern Alaska across western British 

Columbia and Alberta in Canada. From 

there the range extends south and west 

across Washington and Oregon into 

Montana and North Dakota, on south 

well into California. 

Black cottonwood is a big tree, the 

largest of the poplars and the largest 

hardwood in the western U.S. and 

Canada. These trees grow on a 

variety of soil types and sites from the 

moist silts, sands, and gravel of river 

bottoms to the rich soils and loams 

of the uplands. Best growth is at the 

lower elevations on deep, moist, rich 

soils. However, in British Columbia 

the elevation range extends to nearly 

7000 ft. (2100 m). In the better growing 

areas annual precipitation ranges 

from 10 in. (250 mm) to more than 120 

in. (3050 mm). In the mountains and 

inland areas, much of the dormantseason 

precipitation falls as snow. 

The frost-free period ranges from 

about 70 days in the interior to more 

than 260 days in southern California. 

Maximum temperatures can be from 60 

to 117 degrees F (16 to 47 degrees C), 

minimum temperatures from 32 to -53 

degrees F (0 to -47 degrees C). 

Associates of the black cottonwood 

vary with location. They may be 

red alder, Alnus rubra, Douglas-fir, 

Pseudotsuga menziesii, western hemlock, 

Tsuga heterophylla, western redcedar, 

Thuga plicata, Sitka spruce, Picea 

sitchensis, Grand fir, Abies grandis, 

bigleaf maple, Acer macrophyllum, 

Oregon ash, Fraxinus latifolia, several 

pines, Pinus spp., birches, Betula spp., 

cherries, Prunus spp., spruces, Picea spp., 

and various others. 

Stream -bank black cottonwood. 

Trees typically grow to heights of 

98 to 164 ft. (30 to 50 m) with stem 

diameters over 6.5 ft. (2 m) dbh. 

An occasional tree is reported to 

be over 200 ft. (61 m) with a stem 

of 9 ft. (2.7 m) dbh. Life span for 

these trees varies considerably with 

growing conditions—from 70 to 400 

years, usually maxing out at about 

200. Tree stems are usually straight 

and clear halfway to the narrow, 

cylindrical, round-topped, dense 

crowns of erect branches. 

Leaf blades are 3 to 6 in. (7.5 to 

15 cm) long, 2 to 4 in. (5 to 10 cm) 

wide, broadly oval, pointed at the 

tip, rounded at the base, and finely 

Leaves of black cottonwood. 


Black cottonwood board. 

wavy-toothed along the 

margins. Leaves are slightly 

thickened, shiny dark green 

above, whitish and often 

with rusty veins below, 

turning yellow in autumn. 

Leaf stems are slender, 

round, and hairy, 1.5 to 3 

in. (4 to 7.5 cm) long. Twigs 

are moderately stout, 

orange-brown to light 

yellow-brown or greenishbrown, 

slightly angular. 

Terminal buds are 0.75 in. 

(18 mm) long and resinous, 

yielding a pleasant balsamlike 

scent when crushed. 

Bark is tawny yellow to gray and 

smooth on young stems, thickening and 

darkening to dark gray or gray-brown, 

and separated by deep black furrows 

into narrow, flat-topped ridges. 

Black cottonwood is dioecious, 

male (pollen producing) and female 

(seed producing) sex components 

develop separately on different trees. 

The flowers of each develop in the 

form of catkins. The longer female 

catkins develop 3- to 8-inch- (8- to 

20-centimeter-) long strings of bead-like 

spherical fruit capsules which split into 

three segments to release huge crops of 

tiny seeds when ripe. The seeds have a 

tuft of white silky hairs, the “cotton,” 

easily blown by the wind. This cottony 

fluff is the stuff that accumulates in 

drifts on the road, in air conditioners, 

car radiators, window screens, etc. 

Trees may start producing seed at six 

to eight years. Mature trees are said to 

produce up to 48 million seeds a year. 

Wood of black cottonwood is semiring 

to diffuse porous with distinct 

but inconspicuous growth rings. Pores 

are small, numerous, scarcely visible 

to the unaided eye. 

The uniseriate rays are 

very fine and rarely 

visible, even with a 

hand lens. Sapwood is 

narrow, whitish, often 

merging subtly into the 

grayish-white to light gray 

heartwood. The wood is 

without characteristic taste 

or odor when dry, but 

has a disagreeable odor 

when moist. This wood is 

straight grained, uniformly 

medium to finely textured, 

and light weight, specific 

gravity of 0.31, 22 lb/cu. ft. 

(350 kg/m3) at 12% M.C. 

This wood seasons slowly because of 

its very high moisture content when 

fresh-cut and requires careful control 

to minimize warping. It remains 

somewhat unstable after drying. This 

wood is soft, tough, brittle, weak, 

and a lightweight—not as heavy as 

aspen, Populus spp., or basswood, 

Tilia Americana. It also has little decay 

resistance. 

This wood works easily with sharpedged 

hand or power tools but tends 

toward fuzzy surfaces. Sanding with a 

block is necessary to minimize washboarding; 

scraping sometimes works. 

It takes and holds fasteners without 

splitting, glues, stains, and paints 

readily. It is not a good choice for 

turning, but carves nicely. 

There are no reported health hazards 

from working with cottonwood, but 

the usual dust precautions should be 

observed. 

Black cottonwood is a tree of many 

uses. It is popular food and cover 

for many wildlife species including 

deer, elk, and beaver. Birds use the 

tree crowns for nesting sites, and with 

other animals enjoy tree trunk cavities. 

Native Americans discovered that the 

disinfectant properties of the resinous 

tree buds were useful in treating sore 

throats, coughs, lung discomfort and 

rheumatism. The gummy resin of the 

Seed-carrying cotton. 


leaf buds was sometimes used as 

glue or waterproofing. Buds and 

inner bark were also eaten as food 

during hard times. Some of these 

materials are still used in modern 

natural health ointments. 

The aggressive root system of 

this tree has made it an effective 

soil stabilizer, although it is 

occasionally a problem with 

underground piping systems. 

It is also useful for shade, as an 

ornamental, and in shelter belts 

and wind breaks. In Europe this 

tree is commonly used for highway 

screening. Much is used as biomass 

fuel. 

The short, fine fibers and freedom 

from staining make cottonwood 

desirable as pulp for tissue and 

high-quality book and magazine 

paper. It is also used for particleboard, 

oriented-strand board, 

plywood, veneer, fibreboard, and 

hidden parts in furniture. Some is 

used for molding and trim, light 

construction, boxes, crates, berry 

baskets, and cheese boxes. Some is 

still occasionally used for canoes 

and fish traps. 

The genome size, rapid growth, 

brief time to reproductive maturity, 

and economic importance are said 

to have made Populus trichocarpa 

notable as a model organism in 

plant biology. It has been and 

continues to be studied extensively. 

In 2006 it became the first woody 

plant to have its genome sequence 

published. 

Black cottonwood is very 

susceptible to fire damage, and 

the brittle branches are not very 

durable in ice storms or heavy 

snow. Browsing animals take a 

share of young timber, the usual 

array of insects and fungi cause 

some damage, but in none of 

its natural areas is this species 

seriously threatened. Reserves 

remain good. 

19

Following the 65th birthday of that Society in 

February, 2012, NEHOSOC in their annual meeting, 

convened in Amsterdam on March 24, 2012, have 

named well-known IWCS member and Associate 

Editor Nelis Mourik #7460-L as their (currently 

only) Honorary Member in the presence of his 

wife Marianne. Mr Mourik was kindly and ably 

addressed by former NEHOSOC chairman Erik 

Both and received a prolonged ovation. After this he 

received a commemorative diploma. 

Mr Mourik has served both the international 

community of wood friends and Nehsoc for a 

considerable number of years and has served on 

the NEHOSOC board for well over 15 years. After 

several terms he has now left the board, which was 

A Tribute to Allen Shaffer 

Allen Shaffer (#1823) passed away 

in 1984 but his memory lives on. 

Last fall, I received a call from 

Garry Roux requesting that I pay a 

visit to his widow Alice (who lives 

in Sunnyvale, California) as she 

wished to donate her late husband’s 

wood collection to the IWCS. I 

called Alice in November and paid 

her a visit shortly afterward. The 

first thing I noticed upon entering 

her home was a collection of 

carved and turned items on a set 

of shelves opposite the front door. 

Alice pointed out which items 

her husband had carved and that 

the rest were various acquisitions 

and gifts from all over the world. 

The second thing I noticed was 

the absolutely exquisite redwood 

mantle over the fireplace. 

Alice and I quickly bonded when, 

upon her complaining about her 

balance problems as a result of 

the after effects of a craniotomy, 

I mentioned that I, too, had had 

a craniotomy. She asked how I 

happened to have one and it turned 

out that we had the same condition: 

a massive hematoma. After quite 

awhile comparing notes, this lovely 

and wonderful woman informed 

me that she needed to donate her 

Honours bestowed upon Nelis Mourik 

husband’s wood collection as she 

was about to move to Phoenix 

to an assisted living facility. She 

proceeded to give me two boxes 

filled with specimens. Upon getting 

home, I looked over the specimens 

and was pleased to see that they 

consisted not only of representative 

specimens of relatively common 

species but also specimens having 

striking and unusual figure. They 

ranged in size from 2” X 4” X ½” to 

standard sample size (most of them) 

to oversize. 

One week later, I got a letter from 

Alice telling me that she discovered 

another box of wood specimens. I 

arranged a time to pick them up. It 

was this time in early December that 

I told her how amazed I was that 

she had kept these specimens for 

such a long time. It was clear that 

she treasured them as they served 

to remind her of Allen and his love 

for wood. I met her on a number 

of occasions during the following 

weeks. Alice also has donated a 

redwood mantle and is definitely 

pleased that the specimens and 

mantle will be treasured. 

She wants the mantle to have a 

home in the western U.S. The 

specimens can have a home with 

by Willem Hurkmans #8761-L 

a vey good occasion for a vote of thanks and a 

formal decoration by his Society. 

He is well known as an active IWCS member 

and writes on subjects as varied as Shrubwoods, 

Wood identification, Botanical Gardens and Fossil 

woods, both in English and Dutch. Moreover he 

is a well known expert in wood identification. Mr 

Mourik has visited the United States on several 

occasions and was one of the hosting IWCS 

members at the Soest meeting in 2009. 

As trustee of the EuroAfrica region and chairman 

of NEHOSOC it is a very pleasing task to bring 

you this joyful news. 

by Dave Mouat #7101 

whoever wishes them. There are 

some beautiful, rare and unusual 

specimens among the more than 

200 that Allen had. For a list of 

specimens and prices (my best 

guess), please email me at dave. 

mouat@dri.edu. All proceeds will 

be donated to the IWCS. 

Tribute to Dale Hodge #5905 

by Bill Cockrell #4654L-HL 

Dale Hodge of Roachdale, 

Indiana, is a friend we will 

miss. He passed away 3 rd, 

November,2011 as a result of 

pheumonia. He was an avid 

wood turner and wood worker. 

He used his skills to help his 

grand daughter make some 

beautiful 4H woodworking 

entries. He collected all the 

wood he could find with 

beautiful grain or burls. 


Dyewoods 

(continued from March/April 2012) 

Editor: Inadvertently sections of the 

green ebony section of the Dyewoods 

article were left out in the March/ 

April issue of World of Wood. Following 

is the entirety of the green ebony 

story. 

Green ebony 

Green ebony has been a real challenge. 

Initially, the name green 

ebony could not be matched to any 

species; however, it soon became 

apparent that this was because it 

is not a primary common name. 

Finally five separate species called 

green ebony were found, but at 

first, none of the five could be connected 

to dyes. This is in contrast 

to the other woods examined in 

this article. The tree and timber 

literature identified three species: 

Brya ebenus also known as cocuswood, 

a legume, Tabebuia serratifolia 

(Tecoma serratifolia) or Tabebuia 

sp. also known as ipe of the family 

Bignoniaceae, and Diospyros chloroxylon 

of the Ebanaceae. The first 

two come from Central America or 

the West Indies which along with 

their general characteristics made 

them likely dyewood candidates. 

The last one is from India. 

The common name green ebony 

probably comes from the fact that 

these woods have a greenish cast 

or hue to them and that they are all 

hard and heavy like ebony. 

Two other names were discovered 

by consulting the 20 volume 

Oxford English Dictionary, the 

definitive authority on the English 

language. There, green ebony was 

defined as "The wood of the West 

Indian tree Jacaranda ovalifolia, also 

of Excoercaria glandulosa. No reference 

was made to dyes. A search 

for these species in the wood literature 

also did not connect either of 

them to dyes; however, the chemical 

literature on natural dyes made 

the connection. 

Jacaranda ovalifolia (J. mimosifolia) of 

the Bignoniaceae family is the tree 

commonly just known as jacaranda 

and widely planted for its 

showy blue to purple flowers. It is 

a small to medium sized tree native 

to the Caribbean. The wood is 

described as pale gray to whitish, 

straight-grained and relatively soft. 

It has very limited use for turnery 

and bowl carving. 

Excoercaria glandulosa (Gymnanthes 


by Ken Bassett #543 

glandulosa) is in the family Euphorbiaceae. 

Unfortunately no description 

of this particular species could 

be found. The Gymnanthes genus 

contains a small number of shrubs 

and small trees found in the Caribbean 

region. The best known is G. 

lucida know as oysterwood. This 

is a small tree to 30 feet in height. 

Oysterwood has an olive brown 

heartwood with a sharply demarcated 

white sapwood. It is hard 

and heavy with an air-dry density 

of 68 to 75 pcf. The chances are 

good that G. glandulosa is similar 

but possibly comes from a smaller 

tree or shrub as it is not mentioned 

in the context of commercial 

woods. 

These latter two green ebonies 

seem to have little in common 

but were mentioned together in a 

number of sources. They produce 

dye colors of yellow to olive-green 

to brown. The results are similar 

to old fustic and green ebony is 

mentioned as a substitute. The 

coloring agents are jacarandin and 

excoecarin. 

Tribute to A. V. (Swede) Pearson by Allan Schwindt #8209 L 

In addition to Garry’s mentioning 

A. V. (Swede) Pearson passing in 

the last World of Wood, Swede was 

from the Northwest Chapter and I 

would like to add some memories of 

him. Swede was always active in 

our local meetings and he served 

as the finance person on our wood 

auctions for many years along with 

Frank Lynn. Swede recorded all the 

winning bids and made it easy for 

the treasurer to collect the procedes 

from the buyers. 

He was also active in our annual 

outing to the Southern Oregon 

beaches where we salvaged 

driftwood of all kinds. These 

outings often produced some 

excellent myrtlewood as well as 

other useful woods. These trips 

were well attended until Federal 

regulations prevented the practice in 

about 2001. 

I recall that Swede was often the 

brunt of “Swedish Jokes” and he 

enjoyed the ribbing from the group. 

At a meeting near Tacoma WA in 

the shop of Jerry Oetgen, Jerry was 

showing us a large maple bowl 

he had turned where he turned 

too deep and went through the 

bottom. He held it up and looked at 

the group through the hole. As he 

did this, Al Kristek noted that the 

Swedes were the inventors of the 

toilet seat. Then the Norweigens 

made an improvement by putting a 

hole in it. Swede reacted by saying, 

‘Oh, that was just like a knife in my 

heart’, but he also got a good laugh 

out of it. 

Like most of us, Swede had acquired 

quite a lot of wood over the years. 

His family members are now 

working on getting a lot of it ready 

for our spring “Wood Auction.” 

21

Shrubwoods of the World 

Tinder Fungus 

In the world of woody tissue there is 

almost nothing as odd as this ‘woody 

mushroom’. Of course it is no wood, 

like Palms, Bamboo and treefern is no 

wood, even while they are in the Plant 

Kingdom. Tinder fungus is a member 

of the Fungus Kingdom, a separate 

main group of living organisms 

besides Plants, Animals and Bacteria. 

In addition, Tinder fungus is woody 

enough for a description here, and 

what is more, tinder fungus grows on 

wood. 

Tinder fungus’ scientific name is Fomes 

fomentarius (L.:Fr.) J.Kickx f.. Since 

the time Linnaeus called it Boletus 

fomentarius L. (in 1753) it received 

some ten other genus names. The 

genus name Fomes is given by Elias 

Magnus Fries (in 1849), an important 

Swedish mycologist in the 19 th 

century, and is generally accepted 

and in use up to today. Also 22 more 

synonyms are known. Perhaps this 

is an indication that taxonomy in 

the Fungus Kingdom is much more 

complex than in the Plant Kingdom. 

Ultimately, only the fruit body of fungi 

can be studied macroscopically! It’s in 

its family Polyporaceae, after the genus 

Polyporus meaning ‘with many pores’. 

Lense view of a cross section of the dried flesh. 

by Nelis Mourik #7460 L 

The genus name Fomes is 

referring to the Latin word 

for ‘spark’. The specific 

epithet fomentarium is after 

the Latin word ‘fomentum’ 

meaning ‘tinder’. 

Tinder fungus is found 

throughout Europe, Asia, and 

eastern North America as well as in 

North Africa. In northern regions 

they usually grow on birch trees, 

more south also on beech trees. 

Besides they can be found on alder, 

maple, hornbeam, ash, walnut, 

apple, poplar, plum, rowan, oak 

and lime, rarely on conifers such as 

larch. 

Other common names are hoof 

fungus, tinder polypore, tinder 

conk, and – recently – ‘Iceman 

Fungus’. Its Spanish name is hongo 

yesquero. In French, Amadouvier. 

In Dutch, tondelzwam. In German 

zünderschwamm. In the latter 

name we clearly see its main 

use: Zünden means to ignite (see 

below). 

Tinder fungus is a parasite, 

starting on live but weak trees 

with poor health. They penetrate 

their mycelium ‘threads’ through 

damaged bark or broken branches, 

causing white rot, and eventually 

death of the tree, while forming 

enormous fruit bodies. 

Then it continues 

its life as a wood 

decomposer, until 

the log is completely 

destroyed. The fruit 

bodies can reach ages 

of up to 30 years. They 

start as a small ‘half 

mushroom’ hanging on 

the bark, but can reach 

A dried fruit body, attached to a piece of 

trunk. 

a width of up to 50 cm across by 

25 cm high. 

They are too weakly parasitic to 

infect healthy trees. 

Tinder fungus typically has broad, 

concentric ridges with rounded 

margins, every lower new ridge 

wider than the previous. Their 

color can vary from silvery white 

through greyish brown to nearly 

black. Usually they are light 

brown to grey. Dead fruit bodies 

will turn to a dark grey-brown. 

Fungi are not built up of cells 

and cell wall material like 

woods. Instead they have a 

‘fine hairy’ structure of usually 

colorless threads called hyphae, 

intertwined into a tangled web 

called mycelium. Normally 

hyphae are invisible to the naked 

eye, even mycelium is, but not 

when they are massively packed 

together, as in the fungus fruit 

Cross section of the entire fruit body. 


ody. Fungi are also not built up 

of cellulose, like wood is. Instead 

their cell wall material is chitin, a 

polysaccharide that also comprises 

the outside skeleton of insects and 

other arthropods. 

The upper surface of a tinder fungus 

fruit body is tough, bumpy, hard 

and woody. Perhaps horny is a better 

description. The hard skin is between 

2 and 4 mm thick. When knocking on 

it the fruit body sounds suggesting 

hollow. Nevertheless it is massive. 

The flesh inside is hard and fibrous, 

cinnamon brown colored, also when 

dry, grained in a vertical direction, 

which indicates the downward 

growth direction. It is fine textured 

and straight grained. Yearly growth 

zone boundries are perpendicular 

to the grain and clearly visible as 

horizontal interruptions in the vertical 

structure. The flesh in cross section 

shows a regular pattern of pores, 

2-5 per mm, so about 5-20, most 

commonly around 15 per mm 2 , round 

to slightly oval shaped, 150-200 µm 

wide. Many have white contents, the 

higher up in the fruit body, the more 

contents. The same pattern of pores 

is visible on the underside of the fruit 

body. That is for releasing its white 

spores in spring to early summer. 

For those who keep thinking woody, 

besides these vessels (that are no 

vessels!) there are no rays. The dried 

flesh has a warm and velvety feel. 


In the bulbous regions, which 

are the zones of yearly horizontal 

growth, grain is also in the growth 

direction, sometimes displaying 

a fine fan-shaped pattern in a 

longidinal section. These zones 

contain no pores, unless after 

growing downwards in vertical 

grain. This poreless tissue serves for 

producing amadou (see below). 

Specific gravity of the dried flesh is 

about 300 kg/m 3 , the average over 

the whole fruit body is 350 - 380 kg/ 

m 3 . 

A dry mature fruit body can be cut 

easily by using a sharp handsaw. In 

that case the wood from the trunk 

will be even softer than that of the 

fungus, so the whole thing cuts like 

polystyrene foam – except the hard 

skin. Then, when manageable on 

the table saw, also a sharp circular 

saw makes good results. Planing the 

material after cutting won’t work. 

Both the hard but brittle skin and 

the inside flesh easily break out 

or will be torn out on the machine 

planer. A band sander makes better 

results. Extracting the fine dust from 

the machine is an important must. 

It is better not inhaling it, to avoid 

‘lungifungitis’, for the same reason 

as when turning spalted wood on 

the lathe! 

Tinder fungus is not poisonous, but 

because of its hard fibrous structure 

not edible. 

Some dig out all soft material and 

use the outer skin as flowerpot, 

mounted on a piece of board. 

It is said to be used somewhere 

as Christmas decoration. It was 

also used for various medicinal 

purposes. 

Possibly the most important and 

oldest use of tinder fungus is 

making fire. Besides for making 

hats, gloves and breeches, and for 

drying flies for fishing. The material 

processed for this purpose is called 

amadou, a fine, soft, felt-like fabric 

made from the poreless flesh just 

Wood sample ‘flat sawn’. 

Lens view of a longitudinal section 

through the lower edge. 

below the hard outer skin. It is 

obtained by carefully removing the 

skin from the fruit body, followed by 

even more carefully removing that 

poreless flesh from the pored mass 

underneath. After soaking it in water 

for several days to weeks, the rough 

sheet can be hammered to beat it 

thinner, larger and stronger, while 

obtaining a softer touch. It has great 

water absorbing abilities, lasting for 

years, and is highly flammable. It 

allowed ancient people to start fire 

by catching sparks from for instance 

flint struck against iron pyrites. 

Also amadou keeps smoldering 

slowly with very little heat, possibly 

providing the ability to transport or 

keep fire over a longer distance and 

time. 

When found in a glacier in the 

Ötz Valley on the Austrian-Italian 

border in 1991 the 5,000 years old 

ice-mummy called ‘Ötzi the Iceman’ 

appeared to carry four pieces of 

tinder fungus among his tools and 

equipment, along with other outfit 

that served as a firestarting kit. 

Something like what we now call a 

tinderbox. 

23

Before chain saws 

A Guide to More Useful Woods of the World 

Edited by James H. Flynn, Jr. 

The book includes 71 additional 

wood data sheets (WDS) bringing 

the total of published WDSs to 350, 

PLUS two comprehensive indexes. 

It also contains fourteen articles 

from highly respected professionals 

in wood-related matters: Richard 

Crow, Alan B. Curtis, Mihaly 

Czako, Eugene Dimitriadis, Robert 

Goldsack, Ernie Ives, Siegfried 

Klotsche, and Regis Miller. 

A Guide to More Useful Woods of 

the World was launched at the 2007. 

Softcover, 376 pages. $29.95 plus 

postage to members. 

A Guide to Useful Woods of the World 

Edited by James H. Flynn, Jr. and Charles D. Holder 

Published in 2001, the first printing sold out! 

Reprinted in 2007, here’s your chance to have 

a copy of the definitive statement on 279 

woods of the world. The description for each 

wood includes: scientific and family names, 

common names, distribution, the tree, the 

timber, seasoning, durability, workability, 

uses, and supplies, along with a line drawing, 

a photomicrograph, and a color photograph 

of the wood. Also included are common 

name, scientific name, and family name 

indexes and 3 appendices. This is a second 

edition, softcover, 640 pages. $39.95 plus 

postage for members. 

These publications are marketeted on behalf of IWCS and are available through: 

Forest Products Society 

2801 Marshall Court Madison, Wl 53705-2395 

Phone: 608-231-1361 ext. 202 Fax: 608-231-2152 


The Tree of Gernika 

Robin and I recently visited the 

Tree of Gernika located in the town 

of Gernika in the Basque area of 

northern Spain. This oak tree is a 

universal symbol for the Basque 

people. The dead trunk of the 

Old Tree of Gernika stands in the 

grounds and although it’s not the 

first of all the Trees of Gernika, it is 

the oldest vestige that is conserved. 

Successive trees have been replaced 

by a seedling grown from an acorn 

from the previous Tree of Gernika. 

The town of Gernika, better known 

as Guernica was founded in 1366, 

and the strategic importance of 

the site was that it lay on a major 

river estuary, where vessels could 

dock at the port of Suso. From very 

early times meetings were held 

in the open air around the Tree of 

Gernika which became the Basque 

equivalent of a parliament. This 

parliament rule lasted until 1876, 

when the old laws which governed 

life in Biscay were abolished. After 

being suspended for 102 years, 

parliment resumed in 1979. 

The Tree of Gernika represent the 

living symbols of the history of 

the Basque people. Spanish Kings 

were sworn, under the famous Tree 

of Gernika, to respect the Basque 

peoples local rights. 

Basque culture is extremely strong 

and resillient and over the centuries 

many have tried to supress, 


by Morris Lake #7534 

eliminate, intimidate, or dilute, the 

Basque culture. All that happened 

was a strengthening of the Basque 

resolve. The Meeting House is 

the headquarters of the Basque 

country, a meeting point for all the 

territories in the Basque country, 

united by a single cultural and 

ethnologic tradition. 

The standout act of agression 

against them in the 20th century 

happened on 26 April 1937 when 

the town was saturation bombed 

by Hitler’s forces,with the blessing 

of Franco and many were killed. 

When parliament commissioned 

Pablo Picasso to produce 

a painting to support the 

democratically elected government 

against the military rebellion 

led by France, Picasso chose the 

bombing of Gernika as his theme, 

and as Picasso became more 

famous, so also, did Gernika. 

The Tree of Gernika stood on 

a small hillock and has been 

perpetuated by successive 

specimens of oak trees just as the 

soul of the Basque Country is 

transmitted from generation to 

generation. 

The Father Tree of Gernika was 

planted in the 14th century and 

lived for 450 years. 

The Old Tree was planted in 1742, 

and died in 1892. The trunk now is 

On the left is the 

Meeting House, the 

building of which 

was commenced 

in 1826, and on 

the right the new 

Tree of Gernika 

planted in front of 

the Assembly House 

and around which 

meetings have been 

held for centuries. 

The trunk of the Old Tree of Gernika. 

held in a monument in the surrounding 

garden, and is shown above. 

The third tree was planted in 1860, and 

survived the bombing of Gernika in 

1937, but had to be replaced because of 

a fungus in 2004. The gardeners of the 

Biscayan government keep several spare 

trees grown from the tree’s acorns. 

The current tree, as shown below, 

germinated in 1986 was planted on the 

site of its father on the 25th of February 

2005. 

25

Before chain saws 


Member’s Listings and Requests 

Members with wood specimens for sale 

600-plus different kinds of wood 

specimens precisely crafted and 

labeled, most identified from trees 

in the forest. I have woods from 

the USA, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, 

Australia, and others. 

Contact me for a list. 

Alan B. Curtis #1132HL 

2370 Douglas Drive, 

Eugene, Oregon 97405 USA 

E-mail: abcwoods1@gmail.com 

I provide wood specimens from 

around the globe, accurately 

dimensioned, nicely sanded and 

labeled. I maintain a mailing 

list and send notification when 

new specimens become available. 

Contact me for a list. 

Gary Green #6654L 

9923 N 800 E, 

Syracuse, IN 46567 

E-mail: ggreen3@earthlink.net 

www.woodsbygwgreen.com 

Over 1,000 different wood 

specimens from around the world. 

Over one-third are specially figured 

like blistered, curly, fiddle back, 

quilted, bird eye, mottled, burled 

and others. 

Réjean Drouin #3589 

333, 19 e rue, Québec, 

Québec, Canada G1L 2A5 

Phone : 418-529-5466 

E-mail:fusionstorm@hotmail.com 

I am interested in doing some 

swaps. I have 2,200 specimens 

60 x 6 x 90 mm of all sorts of 

imported and home-grown woody 

plants. 

Lionel Daniels #6509 

Windy Heights High Cross, 

Foxfield , Petersfield Hampshire 

United Kingdom GU32 1EK 

Phone: 01730 827472 

I have over 1,000 species in 

specimens form for sale or trade. 

Many are extras received over the 

years so I only have one of many. 

Contact me for my list and send 

me your list. 

Dennis Wilson #2324L 

12008 Andresen Dr., 

South Lyon, MI 48178-9109, USA 

E-mail: dwilson21@att.net 

I often have very rare, sometimes even 

once-in-a-life-time samples available 

from botanical gardens, stock from old 

tropical institutes and own import. 

From some species I am the only 

supplier of wood samples in the world. 

My list is very interesting for the 

advanced wood collector. Please contact 

me for a list. 

Henk Bakker #6966 L Leeuwerikstraat 

23, 2352 ER Leiderdorp, Netherlands 

E-mail: HLBakker@12move.nl 

I provide a wide variety of woods in 

standard and other sizes, including 

blanks for pens, knife handles, bows, 

pistol grips, etc. I also have a lot of 

highly figured snakewood. 

David Persram #2262L 

Persram’s Woods, Crafts, and Pens, 24 

Belvoir Court, Bel-Air, Georgetown, 

Guyana 592-226-1757 E-mail: 

dhpersram@hotmail.com 

I have a good range of more than 400 

species of Australian rainforest and 

outback woods in specimen size or 

as egg blanks. I will also cut to your 

requirements 

Colin Martin #7189 

4 Dorothea Crt, Harristown, 

Queensland 4350, Australia 

Phone: (061) 4635 3697 

E-mail: cmartin@icr.com.au 

Need the following for some research: 

Canarium schweinfurthii, 

Cotylelobium melanoxylon, Eucalyptus 

nobilis, Hopea nutans, Shorea 

argentifolia, Shorea faguetiana, Shorea 

johorensis, Shorea leprosula, Shorea 

smithiana, Shorea superba. 

Stephen Lovell #9411 

830 Pineview Lane 

Sylacauga, AL 35150 USA 

E-mail: stephen_lovell@yahoo.com 


I have a piece of mahogany for sale 

to the highest bidder. Harvested in 

Homestead, Fla. after the ’92 hurricane 

14½ X 15½ X 23 high. A few very 

minor checks. Will send pics to 

serious bidders. Can deliver between 

Mississippi and Buffalo, S. Carolina, 

D. C.and S. Florida. 

Marven Smith #3363 

1256 Moffett Rd, 

Lucedale, MS 39452-7803 USA 

Phone: 601-947-3014 

E-mail: marven@bellsouth.net 

African Wood Specimens: Contact 

me for list of African species 

available. All woods from 

environmentally approved sources. 

Barry James #9380 

Brousse-James & Associates; 

Ecological & Environmental Services 

PO Box 1304, Howick, 3290 

South Africa 

Tel/Fax +27(0)33 3304984 

Cell: 0828954089 

E-mail: brousse@sai.co.za 

Web: www.brousse@sai.co.za 

I have two or more specimens of more 

than 700 to 800 different woods from 

around the world in my stock. I would 

like to exchange or sell. They are 

standard or another sizes. Contact me 

for my list. 

Dieter Becker #6362 

43, Engersgaustr., Neuwied, 

56566, Germany 

E-mail:dieter.becker.iwcs@t-online.de 

Back issues World of Wood 

I can buy, sell and trade back issues of 

the World of Wood magazine. Get the 

missing issues you need at $2 each, 

and less by the year or by the decade. 

Half of all proceeds go to the IWCS 

endowment fund. Issues available 

from 1948 on, free shipping in the 

USA. 

Richard Kuehndorf #8593 

E-mail: sales@rarewoodsandveneers.com 

Phone: 1-866-RAREWOOD 

27

Australian Woods No. 33 

Cardwellia sublimis 

Northern silky oak 

Derivation: Cardwellia in honour of 

the Rt Hon. E. Cardwell, M. P., later 

Viscount Cardwell. Sublimis from 

the Latin sublimis (somewhat lofty), 

alluding to the large stature of the 

tree. The common name alludes to 

its occurrence in north Queensland 

and the wood rays which are similar 

to oak. 

Family: Proteaceae, a large family 

with 32 genera, the largest of which 

are Grevillea, Banksia, Hakea, Dryandra, 

Adenanthus and Macadamia. Cardwellia 

however has only one representative, 

so it is unique. 

Other names: Northern oak, bull oak, 

oak, golden spangle wood, lace wood 

and the Aboriginal name oongaary. 

Distribution: Northern silky oak 

has limited distribution in northern 

Queensland from Mt. Spec north of 

Townsville to Bloomfield, north of 

Cairns and seldom extends more than 

60 km from the coast. It grows from 

sea level to 1,000 metres and occurs 

on many soil types varying from 

shallow skeletal soils to deep, well 

drained soils on basalt, granite and 

metamorphic rocks. It grows in most 

northern Queensland rainforest types 

and is therefore associated with many 

tree species. 

The tree: It’s a medium sized to tall 

tree growing to 40 metres and 2.0 

metres in diameter. The lower trunk 

is generally straight, but the upper 

is not always so and is sometimes 

too crooked to produce millable 

logs. The trunk is usually clean 

for two thirds of its height. Reg 

Lockyer commented that one ‘old 

wag’ once suggested they must grow 

in the dark. Buttressing is minimal 

consisting mainly of grooves at the 

base. Many trees are ‘round to the 

ground’ while others are said to 

resemble an elephant’s foot. The 

bark is flaky and the outer blaze is 

commonly biscuit-brown in colour. 

by Morris Lake #7634 

The adult leaves are 

opposite but not always, 

ovate in shape with a 

medium length petiole. 

They are spirally 

arranged and the 

terminal leaf is absent. 

The underside of new 

leaves are irridescent 

brown and the lateral 

veins form loops inside 

the leaf margins. The 

twigs have numerous 

small lenticels which 

are minute pores with 

similar function to the 

leaf stomata. 

The creamy coloured 

flowers are typical 

Grevillea spike-like 

racemes and the seeds 

are oval brown flat, and 

narrowly winged around 

the margins. 

The distinctive features 

of the tree are its biscuitbrown 

blaze, the oak 

grain in the inner blaze 

of the stem and branches, 

the pinnate leaves and 

large woody fruits. 

Partly decomposed 

and open woody 

fruit capsules 

lying on the forest 

floor. 

The not-too-straight trunk of a Northern silky oak 

at Lake Barrine, Queensland, Australia. 

Trunk with biscuitbrown 

blaze. 


Wood of Cardwellia sublimis 

The sapwood is narrow and a lighter colour 

than the hardwood which is a pale pinkish 

brown marked and with prominent rays 

on the quarter cut surface. The wood is 

regarded as a world class furniture, and 

veneer wood and has been in high demand 

for more than 100 years. It’s priced 

according to its quality. It has the longest life 

in log form of any species growing in north 

Queensland and can be cut and stockpiled 

during the wet season, awaiting suitable 

conditions for removal from the rainforest 

with no adverse effects. The texture is 

coarse but the grain is straight. It’s a strong, 

durable and attractive timber. The fact that 

the trunk tends to be irregular is somewhat 

of an advantage in this wood, because, some 

incredibly figured patterns become evident 

where there is slight directional change. This 

effect is random in intensity. This makes it 

an absolutely fascinating wood to work with 

and the final results will rarely disappoint. It 

is durable when exposed to the weather but 

not when in contact with the ground. It has 

an air dry density at 12% moisture of 560 kg/ 

m 3 . Reg Lockyer comments that this wood 

is so easy on saws that frequently a mill will 

use the same saw for several days before 

sharpening is necessary. It dries well with no 

movement. It works, dresses, and glues well. 

Back cut boards dry much faster than those 

quarter cut so sorting the material before 

drying is important. Shrinkage is around 

1.5% radially and 4.5% tangentially. Contact 

with the sawdust can cause an itchy rash in 

some individuals. Some trees have tiny gum 

veins, however this can usually be picked 

where the bark has small eruptions on the 

surface. 

The wood is now in limited supply due 

to World Heritage listing, however, 

even without this listing the timber was 

extensively harvested and represented 

10-15% of the total mill intake during its 

commercial usage. It is still available, but 

supply is limited. 

As I have mentioned previously regarding 

southern silky oak, one of its former uses 

that I constantly fail to come to grips with, 

is that it was also used extensively in the 

production of tomato cases—taking farm 

produce to market—and boxes to secure 

four-gallon kerosene (paraffin) tins in 

transit. This was simply because silky oak 


was so plentiful, easy to work 

and most importantly—did not 

split when nailed—and because 

its availability exceeded its 

high-end furniture use. In the 

manufacture of packing cases, 

the nails were driven into the 

extreme ends of the top, bottom 

and side boards and since it 

didn’t split and was readily 

available, away it went. These 

were single-use containers, 

most of which were destroyed— 

except the ones recovered 

from the dump by those less 

fortunate. 

I realise it‘s easy to look back 

and criticise the possible 

‘misuse’ of such valuable 

resources, however, the 

important thing for us to learn, 

is to not repeat our mistakes, but 

to respect the intrinsic value of 

our treasures which nature has 

so wonderfully provided. 

This is the importance of the 

declaration of World Heritage 

listing for the great 

diversity and exotic 

species contained in 

these magnificent 

Two northern silky 

oak spoons carved by 

Micheal Kerin, “The 

Spoon Man”, Atherton 

Tableland, and 

a mango and citron 

turned by Reg Lockyer, 

Ravenshoe. 

Untreated specimen of northern silky oak. 

Untreated quarter-cut specimen 

showing medullary rays, the beauty 

for which this wood is famous. 

29

INTERNATIONAL WOOD COLLECTORS SOCIETY 

WOOD SPECIMEN KIT 

In response to the requests of wood collectors, the International Wood Collectors Society endeavors to supply wood 

specimens of 80 species. Prepared specimens measuring 0.5 x 3 x 6 inches are available in kits containing up to 44 

specimens. Whether used for studying wood structure or identification, these specimens will prove to be a valuable 

resource of information to collector, tradesman, craftsman, teacher, or hobbyist alike. Specimens are shipped in 

a padded cardboard box and are numbered to correspond to the list below. Also included is an eight-page wood 

identification bulletin with an identification keys and photos. 

Specimen prices Member Price Non-Member 

40 specimens – minimum order $100.00 $140.00 Order limit - two orders per customer 

Each additional specimen $2.50 $3.50 

Shipping Charges: 

To US $12.00 For up to 44 specimens $24.00 For 45 - 80 specimens 

To Canada and Mexico $33.00 For up to 44 specimens $66.00 For 45 - 80 specimens 

To Other countries $48.00 For up to 44 specimens $96.00 For 45 - 80 specimens 

1. Shipping is via Priority Mail Flat Rate Box. Shipping charges apply equally to members and non-members. 

2. Non-members may wish to join IWCS before ordering to access member prices . See the IWCS website for membership info. 

US$ Annual Membership fee $35; 3 years $90; 5 years $125; life membership $500 www.woodcollocters.org 

3. Members ordering – please state your Membership Number here______________. 

Please mail or email your requests (by item number) to Gary Green, 

9923 N 800 E, Syracuse, IN 46567 USA or ggreen3@earthlink.net, 

Gary will notify you of the total with shipping and payment options. Members must include membership number. 

CIRCLE CHOICES FROM THE FOLLOWING LIST (minimum order 40 specimens) 

9 Abies balsamea balsam fir 46 Maclura pomifera Osage-orange 

38 Acacia farnesiana huisache 61 Magnolia grandiflora southern magnolia 

90 Acer negundo box-elder 23 Melia azedarach Chinaberry 

58 Acer saccharinum silver maple 28 Metasequoia glyptostroboides dawn redwood 

64 Acer saccharum sugar maple 80 Microberlinia brazzavillensis zebrawood 

71 Ailanthus altissima tree-of-heaven 52 Morus rubra red mulberry 

43 Albizia julibrissin mimosa 17 Picea pungens blue spruce 

51 Alnus rubra red alder 41 Pinus palustris longleaf pine 

47 Arbutus menziesii Pacific madrone 88 Pinus radiata radiata pine 

78 Betula alleghaniensis yellow birch 89 Pinus strobus eastern white pine 

76 Callitris glaucophylla white cypress-pine 72 Planera aquatica water-elm 

48 Carya illinoinensis pecan 67 Platanus occidentalis sycamore 

62 Cedrela odorata Spanish-cedar 49 Podocarpus macrophyllus podocarpus 

29 Cedrus deodara deodar cedar 91 Populus tremuloides quaking aspen 

65 Celtis laevigata sugarberry 13 Populus trichocarpa black cottonwood 

54 Cercis canadensis redbud 42 Prunus mexicana Mexican plum 

50 Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Port-Orford-cedar 12 Prunus serotina black cherry 

2 Chamaecyparis nootkatensis Alaska-cedar 30 Pseudotsuga menziesii Douglas-fir 

7 Chamaecyparis thyoides Atlantic white-cedar 77 Quercus alba white oak 

21 Cinnamomum camphora camphor-tree 82 Quercus rubra northern red oak 

5 Cupressus arizonica Arizona cypress 40 Quercus virginiana live oak 

39 Cupressus sempervirens Italian cypress 14 Robinia pseudoacacia black locust 

26 Dalbergia retusa cocobolo 16 Salix nigra black willow 

59 Dalbergia sissoo sissoo 44 Samanea saman monkey-pod 

69 Ebenopsis ebano Texas-ebony 56 Sassafras albidum sassafras 

3 Fagus grandifolia American beech 19 Sequoia sempervirens California redwood 

27 Ficus carica common fig 34 Sideroxylon lanuginosum gum bumelia 

75 Fraxinus americana white ash 35 Swietenia macrophylla Honduras mahogany 

11 Fraxinus berlandierana Berlandier ash 86 Tabebuia spp. ipe 

37 Gleditsia triacanthos honey-locust 8 Taxodium distichum bald-cypress 

57 Grevillea robusta silky-oak 68 Tectona grandis teak 

87 Juglans cinerea butternut 81 Thuja occidentalis northern white-cedar 

15 Juglans nigra black walnut 74 Thuja plicata western redcedar 

6 Juniperus ashei Ashe juniper 10 Tilia americana basswood 

32 Juniperus virginiana eastern redcedar 25 Triadica sebifera Chinese tallowtree 

1 Khaya ivorensis African mahogany 31 Tsuga canadensis eastern hemlock 

73 Larix occidentalis western larch 4 Ulmus americana American elm 

66 Liquidambar styraciflua sweetgum 22 Ulmus crassifolia cedar elm 

79 Liriodendron tulipifera yellow-poplar 24 Ulmus parvifolia Chinese elm 

55 Lysiloma sabicu sabicu 60 Ulmus rubra slippery elm 

Gary Green, IWCS Wood Specimen Kit Chairman Revised April 2012 


Wood Meets 

Great Lakes Fall Region Meeting 

15 September, 2012 

I want to inform you of an upcoming 

regional meeting that I will be holding in 

September. This will give people time to 

plan and set this date aside. I have listed 

below the information that I have available 

at this time for the meeting. 

Fall Regional Meeting 

Date: September 15, 2012 

Location: Bob & Judy Chastain 

Ladoga, IN 

Other details will be announced 

in future issues of World of Wood. 

John Burris, Regional Trustee 

Change to meeting date 

Spring Meeting 

North West Chapter 

The meeting will now be held on 

June 23. 

It will be held at the Adna, Washington 

Grange Hall. 

The previous date was May 19. 

2012 AustralAsian Annual Meeting 

Busselton, Western Australia 

14-21 October, 2012 

A meeting you seriously need to place on your calendar. Busselton, located in the south west of Western Australia, is 

in the Top 10 plant diversity areas of the world. The town is built around the Vasse and Wonnerup Wetlands, listed 

as Wetlands of International Importance for its water birds. 

Planned coach trips will take you inland and along the coast between Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin. 

You will see karri (Eucalyptus diversicolor), tuart (Eucalyptus gomphocephala), and jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forests. 

Plus more—whales, wildflowers, and a train trip on the longest timber piled jetty in the southern hemisphere. 

Hosted by Charles and Lalleen Broadbent, retired forestry educational officer, and the rapidly growing group of 

Western Australian IWCS members. 

Phone: (08) 9752 2111 or Email: chas1644@bigpond.com for more information. 


IWCS Annual General Meeting 

Springfield, Illinois 

June 27 – July 1, 2012 

As of this writing we are starting to finalize plans for this 

meeting. An order form for Tee shirts or Polo shirts was 

included was included in the last issue. Shirts will not be 

available for purchase at the meeting, so be sure to order 

in advance. 

Harlan Palm, President of the National Walnut Growers 

Council, is Wednesday night’s speaker. He will give a 

presentation on Thousand Cankers Disease. On Thursday, 

Guy Sternberg will give a presentation on the oaks of the 

world. Guy is one of the founders of the Starhill Forest 

Arboretum of Illinois College. He will lead us on a tour of 

the Arboretum after lunch on Friday. 

A sign up sheet will be at the registration desk and 

members can carpool. You may stay until dark for 

those attending the tour. Costs will be requested at the 

meeting for those wishing to attend. For those staying and 

members wishing to stay at the meeting Friday evening, 

Jerry Zipprich will be conducting an auction where 

members can sell their tools, antique tools or crafts, up 

to 5 items with 20% of the proceeds going to IWCS and 

80% going to the member from the sale of the items. We 

are planning on having a special guest to do a turning 

demonstration that will amaze you. There will also be 

tours for the ladies and a ladies program. We are still 

looking for ladies to do classes. Ed Hearst is looking for 

help in the wood identification and technical program 

which will be running four sessions a day on Thursday 

and Friday. 

31

Book Review 

International Wood Collectors Society 

c/o Bill & Myrt Cockrell 

2300 West Rangeline Road 

Greencastle, IN 46123-7875 

The sappi tree spotting series: an overdue appreciation. 

It is overdue to pay some attention 

to the sappi tree spotting series that 

has existed for some fifteen years, 

and that is rather unique. The series 

likely started out as some kind of 

public relations effort by Sappi, a 

company that has its roots in South 

Africa, but that deals worldwide 

in cellulose, paper pulp and paper 

(http://www.sappi.com). Apparently 

the company decided to pay 

tribute to South Africa and its trees; 

and they came up with a new angle 

to do so. They gave orders to design 

books that were as accessible as 

possible (avoiding all complicated 

botanical terms), were copiously illustrated 

(in full colour) and printed 

on heavy paper (115 or 135 grams 

paper produced by Sappi, thus also 

advertising some of their top grades 

of paper). The series initially ran 

to four books, published by Jacana 

(http://www.jacana.co.za) between 

1997 and 2000, all paperbacks (say, 

octavo), luxuriously in colour (and 

heavy!), each book dedicated to one 

area. 

These initial books had big introductory 

parts, intended to give a 

user-friendly introduction, but then 

treated the trees of that particular 

region (including the occasional 

palm and some bushes), arranged 

by theme, devoting four pages per 

species. The second of these pages 

was taken up by a watercolour 

painting of the whole tree, supplemented 

by a small line-drawing 

of a relevant feature (leaf, fruit, 

thorn, etc). On the facing page 

were details on where to find the 

tree, and how to recognize it. The 

other two pages contained further 

detail, although in any other book 

they could probably have stood 

alone, as being adequate in their 

own right. These pages contained 

a distribution map, a whole tree 

photograph, a picture of the wood 

(albeit a very small picture), with 

sometimes also an object made 

from the wood (in even fewer 

cases only an object), as well as a 

description of wood properties, 

a listing of relations between the 

tree and animals, and uses by humans. 

Also, a diagram of how the 

tree behaves year round (times for 

leaf, flower and fruit), and watercolours 

of some tree details, again 

with accompanying descriptions. 

Although aimed at local users, 

and hardly must-have items, these 

were really nice books to have, 

even if only to see a new approach 

to presenting trees. 

In 2012, these four books are still 

in print (with a fifth added), but it 

appears that, unfortunately, any 

Prst. Std. 

U.S. Postage 

PAID 

Indpls, IN 462 

Permit No. 8 

by Paul Van Rijckevorsel #8060 L 

edition produced in 2004, or later, 

has given up the initial format. 

These latterday editions only 

devote two pages per species, 

and although these pages include 

most of the previous content, it is 

at a smaller size (a small font, and 

small pictures), they no longer 

include the wood picture and 

description of wood properties. 

Of course this means that the 

books are not so heavy, and can 

be offered cheaper, but although 

they are still nice, they no longer 

rouse this feeling of being really 

something special.

2012 the year of collecting - International Wood Collectors Society

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