The effectiveness of fused borate rods in preventing or eliminating decay in ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir

An investigation of the effectiveness of fused borate rods in preventing and eliminating decay in pine and Douglas-fir was made on behalf of Public Works Canada. In a laboratory study, ponderosa pine samples were impregnated with water. They were conditioned in the laboratory to approximately 50 percent moisture content prior to inoculation with Postia placenta, Gloeophyllum trabeum, and Coniophora puteana. Some samples were also treated with fused borate rods at the time of inoculation. Other samples were treated with rods 4 and 8 weeks after inoculation. At the end of the 12-week incubation, the test fungi were successfully recovered from untreated controls, but could only be recovered from treated samples where borate rods were installed 8 weeks after inoculation with G. trabeum and C. puteana, and then only near the source of inoculation. In the field investigation, borate rods were used to treat Douglas-fir timbers containing Coniophora spp. After 3 months, attempts to re-isolate the fungi were unsuccessful between the rows of rod treatments. Elimination of the decay fungi was only partially successful at 50 and 100 mm laterally from the outer row of rods. A diffusion period longer than 3 months may result in a more effective treatment, since residual borate remained at the treatment point.

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