Wood density of three species of pine at the Río de los Sauces region (Córdoba, Argentina)

Abstract

The objective of this paper was to evaluate the quality of wood of three species of pines on the basis of their specific gravity and their ovendried and saturated densities. The species studied were Pinus taeda, P. elliottii and P. pinaster, from samples of the Río de los Sauces region (Córdoba, Argentina). The method used was the immersion method according to the Achimedes principle. The results showed that P. taeda had the lowest value (statistically significant, α=0.05) in their specific gravity whereas P. elliottii and P. pinaster did not differ. No statistically significant differences were found between the ovendried and saturated densities in any of the species. These results show that the techonological value of the wood of these three species in the Río de los Sauces region is lower than those of the same speceis in their native region.