Sandalwood Bamboo Timber Uses Etc

Sandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood, essential oils are also extracted from the woods for use. Both the wood and the oil produce a distinctive fragrance that has been highly valued for centuries. Consequently, the slow-growing trees have been overharvested in many areasThe sandal tree, botanically known as Santalum Album belongs to the family Santalaceae. The sandal tree grows almost exclusively in the forests of Karnataka, followed by Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, Timor Islands of Indonesia etc. The tree is medium sized 12-15 meters tall. The tree reaches its full maturity in 60 to 80 years, which is when the center of the slender trunk (the heart wood) has achieved its greatest oil content. As the tree grows, the essential oil develops in the roots and heartwood, which requires atleast 15 to 20 years. Full maturity is reached after 60 to 80 years. The core of dark heartwood gradually develops, which is covered by outer sapwood. The sandalwood tree is never felled, but uprooted in the rainy season, when the roots are richer in the precious essential oil. Vietnam and New Caledonia have well controlled plantations of genuine Sandalwood. The best quality oil comes from the Indian province of Mysore and Tamil Nadu where the harvest of Sandalwood trees are protected by the state government.
"The sandal tree does very well on it 's own, and seems to appear in places it was never seen before. However all attempts by man to proliferate and increase the growth of the species have yeilded declining plant populations. It appears very resistant to manipulation!" -- (source: Christopher Mc Mahon)

A forest product is any material derived from a forest for commercial use, such as lumber, paper, or forage for livestock. Wood, by far the dominant

References: * 7 External links | Under proper conditions, wood provides excellent, lasting performance. However, it also faces several potential threats to service life, including fungal activity and insect damage—which can be avoided in numerous ways. Section 2304.11 of the International Building Code (IBC) addresses protection against decay and termites. This section provides requirements for non-residential construction applications, such as wood used above ground (e.g., for framing, decks, stairs, etc.), as well as other applications. There are four recommended methods to protect wood-frame structures against durability hazards and thus provide maximum service life for the building. All require proper design and construction: 1. Control moisture using design techniques to avoid decay. 2. Provide effective control of termites and other insects. 3. Use durable materials such as pressure treated or naturally durable species of wood where appropriate. 4. Provide quality assurance during design and construction and throughout the building’s service life using appropriate maintenance practices Lumber (also known as timber) is wood in any of its stages from felling to readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production. Lumber is supplied either rough or finished. Besides pulpwood, rough lumber is the raw material for furniture-making and other items requiring additional cutting and shaping. It is available in many species, usually hardwoods.[citation needed] Finished lumber is supplied in standard sizes, mostly for the construction industry, primarily softwood from coniferous species including pine, fir and spruce (collectively known as Spruce-pine-fir), cedar, and hemlock, but also some hardwood, for high-grade flooring