Incidence and Structure of Gelatinous Fibers Within Rapid-Growing Eastern Cottonwood
Abstract
An intensive investigation of samples taken within the stems of two 21-year-old Populus deltoides Bartr, trees growing rapidily under plantation management revealed that the percentage of gelatinous fibers in the wood ranged from 0.51-97.87. All positions sampled had some gelatinous fibers even though the trees were selected from within the plantation for their dominance, straightness, freedom from lean, and outstanding form. The incidence of gelatinous fibers was particularly high in the upper bole even though the distribution of gelatinous fibers followed no set pattern. In most cases no gelatinous fibers were observed in the last several tangential rows of the latewood cells, but some were associated with vessel elements. Gradations in structure and chemical composition seemed to be related to the position in the tree. Ultrastructurally, the gelatinous fibers were characterized by the absence of an Sa layer, and a G-layer with a high degree of longitudinal orientation that was loosely attached to the secondary wall. The high incidence of gelatinous fibers in these nonleaning trees suggests that lean may not always be the most important factor in tension wood formation, especially when the whole tree is considered, and that other factors must be involved. It is suggested that the incidence of gelatinous fibers may be of particular importance in the utilization of topwood in cotton-wood and in whole trees grown under intensive management.References
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