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Sustainable Forest Producers

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This user group supports private and community tropical timber producers engaged in the responsible management of natural forests and plantations and their marketing of logs, flitches and poles. It will promote the marketing of logs of lesser-used species by certified forest producers. (To view example, click Brosimum alicastrum).

Over time the editorial panel may recommend other areas, such as technical information exchanges on topics like sustainable harvesting techniques in natural forests or tropical plantation establishment, management and harvesting.

ITTO seeks expressions of interest from local producer organizations and senior technical specialists to participate in the editorial panel for this user group. Please contact: Ramon Carrillo, carrillo@itto.int

(For more on forest policy and governance, see www.itto.int).

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REFERENCE SECTION

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  • ABC - Search Substitutes for globally-traded temperate species - Coming soon.  Will be able to search  substitutes for: North America: Acer saccharum Marsh., Alnus rubra Bong, Carya ovata K. Koch, Fraxinus americana L., Juglans nigra L., Liriodendron tulipifera L., Pinus ponderosa Lawson & C. Lawson, Pinus taeda L., Prunus serotina Ehrh., Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco, Quercus rubra L., Quercus alba L., Fraxinus excelsior L., Picea abies (L.) Karst. European Union: Pinus nigra Arnold, Pinus pinaster Aiton, Pinus sylvestris L., Quercus robur L., Fagus sylvatica L. Other: Araucaria angustifolia O. Ktze, Eucalyptus globulus Labill., Pinus radiata D. Don, Callitris glauca R. Br., Eucalyptus marginata Sm., Eucalyptus deglupta Blume.
  • ABC - Timber Availability. Abundance Data for Natural Forests - Reliable inventory data of standing timber by species for natural tropical forests is scarce.  It can vary widely between regions and forest types. When such data is available, this website uses, for comparison purposes, the standing volume of timber per hectare of a species in trees larger than 40 cm. diameter at breast height (d.b.h.). The 40 cm d.b.h. was chosen only as a suitable comparative volume across different species. (In some tropical countries forest regulations still prevent trees under 50 cm d.b.h from being legally harvested). Low Abundance = Under 2 m3/ha; Medium Abundance = 2-5 m3/ha; High Abundance = Over 5 m3/ha.
  • ABC - Contributing missing photos or information - Donations from individuals and institutions are greatly appreciated and will be acknowledeged. Evidence of proper species identification and of permission to use the photos and information is essential. Kindly contact the person listed in your user group to receive detailed instructions. Thank you.
  • ABC of Website - Authors of Species Photos - Many individuals and institutions have contributed their great photos and valuable time to this website. To them go our gratitude and appreciation. Authors Species photos
  • ABC - All Credits for Website Images and Photos - To view credits for Species photos: Species   To view credits for Website imagery: Imagery
  • ABC - Authors Species Photos - Their have been many individuals and institutions that have contributed their great photography and time to this site. We express our gratitude and appreciation. View Species  Photo Credits
  • ABC - Photo Credits - Main Imagery - Many individuals and entities have contributed important photography and time to this site. To all of them we express our deep gratitude and appreciation. View Main Imagery Photo Credits
  • ABC - Air Dry Density ("Weight" of wood), Technology keys - Density referred to the ratio of air dry weight of wood to its air dry volume, both measured at 12 % of moisture content. This density in air dry condition, is  loosely called sometimes "weight of wood".  The five categories of air dry density (with both weight and voume measured at MC12%) of the original database are used as "technology keys" for species searches. They are: Light = Less than 0.4 g/cm3; Medium-light = From 0.4 g/cm3 up to 0.55 g/cm3; Medium-heavy =  From 0.55 g/cm3 up to 0.75 g/cm3; Heavy = Over 0.75 g/cm3 and up to 0.95 g/cm3; Very heavy = Over 0.95 g/cm3. For converting to English units please search for "Conversion factors".

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  • DURABILITY - Natural Durability Groundtests - Reports of ongoing ground tests for European and imported woods in Norway. Bibliography Item 615. Download the PDF
  • DURABILITY - Natural Durability Checklist - Natural durability of wood.  A worldwide checklist of species by Oregon State University.  Bibliography Item 616. Download the PDF
  • DENSITY - Density Variation - Many tree species have lower density in the  center part of log, maybe juvenile wood, and density variation along the height of the stem.
    http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/users/millsr/isbes/ODLF/TFP43.pdf

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  • HARVESTING - Release of Stress - Tree felling and crosscutting of stems into logs will release longitudinal growth stresses near the cut, so that logs split at the new ends. The end splits become larger during log storage of a day, to extend in severe cases from bark to bark, and at times over the entire length. Among the numerous methods to prevent end splitting, some are worth the effort for expensive logs. When logs are sawn, growth stress release causes the lumber to warp and to end split again. Lumber sawn from bent flitches varies in thickness.
  • HARVESTING - Relaxation Methods - Steaming or smoking and some mechanical cutting (i.e. girdling) methods are proposed to decreasing growth (residual) stresses in a stem or log, to overcoming severe distortion or splitting after cutting. Untreated Terminalia sp. log has severe end split.Treatment, befor crosscutting makes a groove around the log, like girdling, and crosscutting results in  no end split.
  • HARVESTING - Log Split - Splits of over 60 cm (2 ft.) along the long axis of a log due to high level of growth stresses.
  • HARVESTING - ITTO Reduced Impact Logging Projects - Get information from the ITTO main site about completed reduced impact logging projects by ITTO.   Get
    http://www.itto.int/project_search/?proid=&keyword=reduced+impact+logging&submit=&donor=&status=COMPLETED&areasofwork=&prolevel2=
  • HARVESTING - Girdling - Cutting a girdle around the stem to kill the tree by interrupting the circulation of water and nutrients. Decreasing the moisture content and residual stresses inside the stem, resulting in the floater log and preventing severe splits during harvesting. Applied 2 years before cutting in teak of Indonesia.
  • HARVESTING - End Split - End split within 60 cm (2 ft.) or so of a log's end cross section due to high level of growth stresses.

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  • IDENTIFICATION - Wood Anatomy Timbers Central America ( Species Descriptive Pages) - Illustrated bilingual manual for learning wood identification of timber species from Central America. 2011. Courtesy of  A. Wiedenhoeft and USDA FPL.  Chapter 7, Descriptive pages section has 97 pp. Bibliographic reference Nr. 614. (Introductory Chapter 1 is Bibliographic rereference Nr. 612) See Descriptive pages, Chapter 7.
    http://www.tropicaltimber.info/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/USDAFPL.Wiedenhoeft.2011.Manual_SPAENG_Identificacion_anatomica_maderas_Centroamerica-_wiedenhoeft007.pdf
    Download the PDF
  • IDENTIFICATION - Anatomy West Africa Timbers - Download the PDF
  • IDENTIFICATION - Trees Cultivated Southeast Asia - Trees commonly cultivated in Southeast Asia. FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Botanical illustrations, Internet. Item 618 in Bibliography. View More Info
    http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/ac775e/ac775e03.htm
  • IDENTIFICATION - Identificación anatomía maderas - Bilingual document. Manual con fotos en Español e Inglés para enseñar identificación anatómica de maderas con especies de América Central, 2011. Capitulo 1.
    http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/pdf2011/fpl_2011_wiedenhoeft001.pdf
    Download the PDF
  • IDENTIFICATION - Trade Name - Name usually given in international trade. Sometimes for a group of similar species traded jointly.
  • IDENTIFICATION - Taxónomo botánico - Persona dedicada al estudio taxonómico de las plantas.
  • IDENTIFICATION - Taxon - Categoría de clasificación botánica.
    http://www.mobot.org
  • IDENTIFICATION - Species - In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring.
  • IDENTIFICATION - ITTO Wood Identification Projects - Get information off of the ITTO main site about wood identification projects. Get  
  • IDENTIFICATION - ITTO Tree Identification Tropical Timbers - Get information off the ITTO main site about tree identification projects. Get  
    http://www.itto.int/project_search/?proid=&keyword=tree+identification&submit=&donor=&status=COMPLETED&areasofwork=&prolevel2=
  • IDENTIFICATION - Glosario Botanico - Glosario  Ilustrado de de Términos de Botánica Forestal.  Extractado de:  Manual de Identificación de Especies Forestales de la Región Andina, INIA, Perú 1996. ITTO PD 150-91.  Full reference in bibliography, Nr 56.
    Download the PDF (Spanish only)
  • IDENTIFICATION - Genus - In biology, a genus (plural: genera) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial species name for each species within the genus.
  • IDENTIFICATION - Género - Taxon que reune una o varias especies.
    http://www.mobot.org
  • IDENTIFICATION - Filogeny - The ancestor-descendant relationships of groups of organisms.
    http://www.herbarium.usu.edu/teaching/4420/planttaxonomy.htm
  • IDENTIFICATION - Filogenia Botánica - La filogenia aplicada a la botánica es la historia del desarrollo evolutivo de las plantas.
  • IDENTIFICATION - Family - In biological classification, a family (Latin: familia, plural familiae) is a taxonomic rank between order, and genus. A family may be divided into one or more subfamiles, intermediate ranks above the rank of genus.
  • IDENTIFICATION - Familia - Taxon que reune uno o varios géneros.
  • IDENTIFICATION - Especie - Unidad del estudio de la taxonomía.
    http://www.mobot.org
  • IDENTIFICATION - Common Name - Vernacular name, not the scientific or botanical name.
  • IDENTIFICATION - cf. - "Confere" y significa "confrontar, cotejar", comparar con
  • IDENTIFICATION - Botanical Taxonomist - Scientist that finds, identifies, describes, classifies, and names plants.
  • IDENTIFICATION - APG III - Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, or APG, refers to an informal international group of systematic botanists who came together to try to establish a consensus on the taxonomy of flowering plants (angiosperms) that would reflect new knowledge about plant relationships discovered through phylogenetic studies.
    http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/

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  • MARKETING - ITTO Trends_Production_Trade_Prices_Primary and Secondary Wood Products - Bi annual review of trends in production, trade and prices of primary and secondary wood products offered by ITTO´s main website  in collaboration with UNECE, FAO, EUROSTAT. View
  • MARKETING - ITTO_Timber_Trade_Statistics - Production, Consumption and Trade of roundwood and primary wood products reported by ITTO's main website in collaboration with other global entities. Available in English, Spanish, French. Review
    http://www.itto.int/annual_review_output/
  • MARKETING - ITTO Lesser Used Species Projects - Get information off of the ITTO main site about Lesser Used Species (LUS) projects.
    http://www.itto.int/project_search/?proid=&keyword=lesser+used+species&submit=&donor=&status=COMPLETED&areasofwork=&prolevel2=
  • MARKETING - Alternative Species - Alternative available species to major  timber species used commercially.

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  • POLES - Utility Poles - Download the PDF to learn more about Utility Poles.
    http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/pdf1997/wolfe97b.pdf
  • PROPERTIES, WOOD - Reaction Wood - Wood with more or less distinctive anatomical characters found typically in parts of leaning or crooked stems and in branches and tending to restore the original position if this has been disturbed. It includes tension wood in dicotyledons and compression wood in conifers. (International Assoc. of Wood Anatomists, 1962 quoted in ¨The biology of reaction wood¨ by Gardiner B. et al., 2014).
  • PULPING - Pulping Properties - Access the forestry paper through the download.
    Access Forestry Paper
  • PROTECTION OF WOOD - Preservation, Wood - A number of different (chemical) preservatives and processes (also known as timber treatment, lumber treatment or pressure treatment) that can extend the life of wood, timber, woodstructures or engineered wood.
  • PROPERTIES, WOOD - Juvenile Wood, Teak - Download the publication from the main ITTO International website.
    http://www.itto.int/files/itto_project_db_input/2778/Technical/PPD-68-03-R2-I-Teak-Handbook.pdf
  • PROPERTIES, WOOD - Juvenile Wood, Acacia - Download the publication from the main ITTO International website.
    http://www.itto.int/files/user/pdf/publications/PD%20306%2004/pd306-04-3%20rev1(I)%20e.pdf
  • PROPERTIES, WOOD - Heart Rot - Rot at central part of standing tree. Depends on tree species, age and other factors.
  • PROPERTIES, WOOD - Growth Stresses - Growth stresses develop in each stem and in each branch of trees. They have their origin in growing wood cells, which tend to contract in fibre direction, and to expand transversely against restraining forces of adjoining older wood cells. One-sided longitudinal growth stresses help trees obtain optimum crown and branch orientation, as we know from reaction wood, in which growth stresses are extreme. The stresses, which can be measured in several ways, also prevent mechanical failures of various kinds in the tree's vital sapwood, but they cause compression failures and heart checks in the core of big trees.
  • PROPERTIES, WOOD - Brittle Heart - The defective core of a log. The cell wall of the wood fiber has minute failures and low density in the center part of standing tree. Depending on timber species it may be caused by big growth-stresses and juvenile wood. There are visible compression failures in wood and minute failures at cell wall (micro scopic scale).
  • PROTECTION OF WOOD - Blue Stain - A common form of bluish discoloration generally of sapwood caused by various fungi.
  • PROPERTIES, WOOD - Amount of Stress - The amount of stress in new wood tissue at the periphery of the stem seems to be determined by genetic as well as environmental factors. Trees which receive light from the same direction throughout their life have no incentive to reorient, so that stresses are weak in multi-storeyed stands. By contrast, trees in heavily thinned or heavily pruned stands develop strong growth stresses in order to achieve improved orientation. Girdling and defoliation appear to weaken the stresses, but generally, growth rates and stresses are not related. In standing dead trees and in stored roundwood the stresses diminish as time passes, although the mechanism of stress decrease remains unclear.

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  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - Sustainable Forestry Initiative - Active in North America. Certified by PEFC. View the fact sheet on green building.
    http://www.spi-ind.com/document_library/SFI_Green_Building_Fact_Sheet.pdf
  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - PEFC - Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes
    http://www.pefc.org/
  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - LUS - Lesser Used Species
  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - FSC - Forestry Stewardship Council. Active globally.
    http://info.fsc.org/
  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - Forest Preservation - Maintaining undisturbed natural areas which have been little touched by humans.
  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - Environmental Standards -
  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - Conservation of Forests - Wise use of the forest and associated natural resources for this and future generations.
    http://itto.int
  • RESPONSIBLE CONSUMER - CITES - CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.  Entered in force in 1975 and as of December of  2014 had been signed by 180 countries. ITTO actively supports CITES work.
    http://cites.org/eng/disc/what.php

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  • VIRTUAL LIBRARY - English Language - Initial  entries: For  Publications by ITTO Projects search in Reference Section. Enter keyword:  ITTO Projects Search the USDA Forest Products Laboratory Publications:  http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/search/index.php    

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