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Interlocked grain and density patterns in Bagassa guianensis: changes with ontogeny and mechanical consequences for trees

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Abstract

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Interlocked grain and basic density increase from pith to bark in Bagassa guianensis and greatly improve trunk torsional stiffness and wood tenacity in the radial plane.

Abstract

Trees modulate their building material, wood, throughout their lifetime to meet changing mechanical needs. Basic density, a widely studied wood property, has been proved to be negatively correlated to growth rate and is then considered to reflect the diversity of species growth strategies. An alternative way for trees to modulate growth strategy at constant construction cost is changing the organisation of their fibre network. Interlocked grain, the result of a periodic change in the orientation of the fibres in the tangential plane, is found in numerous tropical tree species. In this study, we first describe the variations in basic density and interlocked grain occurring during ontogeny of Bagassa guianensis, a fast-growing Amazonian species, and analyse their influence on the local mechanical properties of wood at the tissue level. The observed radial patterns and properties are then incorporated in a finite element model to investigate their effect on mechanical properties of the trunk. We report extreme and highly reproducible concomitant radial variations in basic density and interlocked grain in all the sampled trees, with grain angle variations ranging from − 31° to 23°. Such changes in wood during ontogeny allows trees to tailor their growth rate while greatly improving resistance to torsion and reducing the risk of splitting.

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Fig. 1

(illustrations adapted from Hernandez and Almeida 2003)

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Notes

  1. In this work, the fracture system will always be characterised by two letters accordingly to Ashby et al. (1985): here for example the first letter “tangential” indicating the direction normal to the crack plane and the second letter “longitudinal” referring to the direction of crack propagation.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Eric Nicolini (CIRAD—AMAP) and Onoefé NGwete (CIRAD—ECOFOG) for their help in tree identification and field work and Yves Caraglio (CIRAD—AMAP) to share his knowledge on Bagassa guianensis architecture. This research project was financially supported by the Labex CEBA (ANR-10-LABX-25-01), CNRS-INSIS and European Social Fund awards.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CNRS, UMR EcoFoG, AgroParisTech, Cirad, Inra, Université des Antilles, Université de Guyane, Campus Agronomique, BP 701, 97387, Kourou, France

    Julie Bossu, Jacques Beauchêne & Bruno Clair

  2. Laboratoire de Mécanique et Génie Civil (LMGC), Université de Montpellier, Place E. Bataillon, 34095, Montpellier, France

    Romain Lehnebach

  3. C2MA, IMT Mines Ales, Université de Montpellier, 6 Avenue de Clavières, 30319, Ales Cedex, France

    Stephane Corn & Arnaud Regazzi

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  1. Julie Bossu
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  4. Arnaud Regazzi
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  5. Jacques Beauchêne
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Correspondence to Julie Bossu.

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468_2018_1740_MOESM1_ESM.eps

Sup. Mat. 1 A) Width of the IG half-period (P1/2) depending on their number. The red dashed line represents the median P1/2 value obtained for all IG periods. Tukey’s test showed no significant differences (pv=0.251). B) Maximal IG amplitudes corresponding to the amplitude peaks with absolute distance from the pith. Positive correlation between IG amplitude and absolute distance to the pith (IG amplitudes=2.7082+0.9931*r). The red dotted line represents the linear model (R2=0.54; pv< 2.2e-16) (EPS 88 KB)

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Bossu, J., Lehnebach, R., Corn, S. et al. Interlocked grain and density patterns in Bagassa guianensis: changes with ontogeny and mechanical consequences for trees. Trees 32, 1643–1655 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-018-1740-x

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