The radial variation of fiber length increment (due to intrusive growth) and its relation with internal and external (climatic) factors were investigated for Acacia mangium trees collected in Indonesia and Malaysia. Wood fiber length and fiber length increment were approximated with respect to the distance from the pith (x) by a logarithmic function and vessel element length by a linear function. The results were y = 0.14 . ln(x) + 0.48, y = 0.0005 . x + 0.20, and y = 0.13 . ln(x) + 0.31, respectively. The radial variation of fiber length was related to the growth rate rather than the age of the cambium. The results of the cross-correlation function between wood fiber length increment and climatic factors showed that fiber lengths responded to changes in precipitation with a time lag of between zero to four months.

A novel method for calculating the wood fiber length using a single cross section was devised and verified in Acacia mangium. This method is based on the ratio of cell tips to total cell number in a cross section related to the wood fiber. The fiber length was calculated using the single cross-section method and was compared with the measurements obtained using the conventional maceration method and the serial cross-section method. There was no significant difference among the three methods.