Lumber Quality of Beetle-Killed Southern Pine in Virginia

Test sawings of beetle-killed southern pine were conducted to determine the potential grade yields of dimension lumber at various times after foliage fade Trees were harvested at periods of 12 months, 20 months (2 winters and 1 summer), and 20 months (2 summers and 1 winter) after foliage fade. The amount of lumber in grades No. 2 and Better decreased rapidly with increasing time after foliage fade. Green, control trees had 96 percent of their dimension lumber in grades No. 2 and Better, while trees on the stump 12 months after foliage fade retained approximately 55 percent of their dimension lumber in grades No. 2 and Better and trees on the stump 20 months (2 summers and I winter) had only 24 percent of their dimension lumber in grades No. 2 and Better. Major causes of degrade were decay and large borer holes. The lumber recovery factor was also lower for beetle-killed trees. This was due to increased slabbing by the sawyer and greater amounts of cull boards. It was found that an average 12-inch small-end-diameter upper log from beetle-killed pine, which was left on the stump for 20 months (2 summers and 1 winter) between foliage fade and harvesting, retained less than half the value of a similar log cut from healthy green pine when processed into dimension lumber.

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