GRADE YIELDS AND WOOD PROPERTIES OF NORWAY SPRUCE [PICEA-ABIES (L) KARST] FROM THE MARITIMES

Norway spruce [Picea abies (L.) Karst] is one of the major nonnative softwood species in the Maritimes. A project was undertaken to evaluate the grade yields and mechanical properties of Norway spruce. The project also provided comparative information on the wood quality of two Norway spruce provenances from Germany and Poland. Four plantations were selected for the study with two of these plantations containing trees of known provenances. One plantation was mature and the other three were juvenile. In total, 530 pieces of lumber and the same number of matched small clear specimens were tested for bending properties. Prior to testing, the lumber was visually graded according to both British and Canadian specifications. Quality of lumber varied significantly between sites. Lumber from the Polish provenance had slightly better mechanical properties than that from trees of the German provenance. Compared with published information, the plantation-grown Norway spruce had lower clear wood bending properties and specific gravity than primary eastern Canadian spruce species and balsam fir, and natural Norway spruce grown in Europe.