Fungal deterioration of second-growth Douglas-fir logs in coastal British Columbia

Abstract

Fungal deterioration of second-growth Douglas-fir logs, felled each month from August 1961 to May 1962, was studied 2, 4, and 6 years after felling. Decay increased from 10% of log volumes after 2 years to 47% after 6 years. The rate of decay, particularly for the brown cubical type, was greater for autumn- and winter-felled logs than for those felled in the spring and late summer, and closely paralleled the seasonal pattern of ambrosia beetle attack.Decay rates increased with decreasing log size, increasing percentage of sapwood, and increasing height of log above ground. For the same diameter of log, base logs decayed less rapidly than second logs, possibly because of their lower proportion of sapwood in relation to heartwood.Decay expressed as a percentage of total log volume (Y) may be estimated (R 2 = 0.71) with the following equation: Y = 13.2 + 10.7X 1 − 3.2X 2 , where X 1 = years elapsed and X 2 = d.i.b. (diameter inside bark) top of log.Of 30 wood-decay fungi isolated, Naematoloma sp. (N. capnoides or N. fasciculare), which causes a white rot, was associated with the most decay. Fomes pinicola was mainly responsible for brown cubical sap rot, while Poria monticola and P. carbonica caused a brown cubical heart rot at the ends of logs.The significance of variations in deterioration rate and fungal associates is discussed in relation to log durability and salvability.