It is quite easy to determine the species of a tree by leaves, bark, trunk or branches. However, woodcarvers often have to deal with blanks in the form of debarked snags, boards and bars. In this case, it is possible to determine the wood only by carefully studying its structure. Of course, experience with a wide variety of tree species is also important.
Necessary
- - hacksaw;
- - a sharp knife;
- - magnifying glass;
- - sandpaper;
- - brush;
- - pure water.
Instructions
Step 1
Prepare a sample to study its structure. To do this, cut off a piece of wood from a block or board with a hacksaw. Three cuts are possible: face (transverse), tangential (longitudinal) and radial. The last cut can be obtained by sawing the wood exactly through the core.
Step 2
Cut the sections thoroughly, first with coarse-grained and then with fine-grained sandpaper. As a result, the wood surface should be smoothly sanded.
Step 3
Prepare a magnifying glass with high magnification, a container of clean water and a brush.
Step 4
Examine the core of the wood fragment first. The diameter of the central part of deciduous species is significantly larger than that of conifers. The end part of the alder is in the shape of a triangle, in the ash tree the core resembles a square, in the poplar it has a pentagonal shape. The core of the oak is peculiar - it looks like a five-pointed star.
Step 5
Pay attention to the annual layers (rings), which are a characteristic feature of many breeds. In a juniper, for example, the rings look like wavy closed lines. However, in rare cases, layers in other species have the same structure, if the tree grew in abnormal conditions.
Step 6
If you are sure you have a hardwood specimen in front of you, take a closer look at the dark and light dots on the butt cut. These are vessels that in oak and elm, for example, are arranged in two or even three rows, forming well-visible rings. Linden, aspen, and birch, on the other hand, have very small and unevenly spaced vessels.
Step 7
Examine the core beams located at the end of the sample. Usually these are light stripes fanning from the core to the bark of the tree. To make the rays appear better, dampen them with clean water using a brush. All coniferous trees have narrow core rays, they are almost invisible to the naked eye. Oak and beech have wide beams. But in alder, they only seem large, but when viewed through a magnifying glass, here you can see beams of thin rays gathered together.
Step 8
Finally, evaluate the strength of the piece of wood by making an incision with a sharp knife. Ash, oak and elm are heavier and more durable. Maple, birch and ash also have a high hardness, in contrast to softer species such as aspen, linden or alder.
