Wood density, latewood percentage, ring width and the cross sectional dimensions of tracheids (wall thickness, lumen area, radial and tangential lumen diameters) were evaluated from ten-year-old trees of Pinus maximinoi H.E. Moore, P. pseudostrobus Lindley and P. patula Schiede ' Deppe grown in South Africa. The species were almost equal in terms of average volume per tree. The wood of P. patula differed from the other species in latewood percentage, tracheid wall thickness, lumen area, radial and tangential lumen diameters. Apart from ring widths, significant differences within species were found for all of the wood and tracheid properties studied. The wood of P. patula has a higher latewood percentage especially in the outer parts of the stem and smaller tracheids than the other two species. The wood densities of P. patula and P. maximinoi were similar. The tracheids of P. pseudostrobus had thinner cell walls than the other two species and wood density was also lower for this species possibly as a result of reduced volume of cell wall material. The differences between and within species for wood and tracheid properties suggest that end use products will vary according to the seed source used.
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