TREES
SPRUCE
AREAS OF GROWTH
Spruce is an industrial tree belonging to the Pinaceae family and has great economic importance. It has a wide distribution in the world, but mainly it grows in temperate and cold regions in North America, Scandinavia, Central and East Asia and the Black Sea. It is a tree species that usually belongs to the northern hemisphere.
EXPORT/IMPORT
The export of spruce trees is mainly made from Russia, Bulgaria, Austria and Cameroon. On the other hand, the top importers of spruce are India, Iran and Iraq. Since it’s not allowed to enter with its bark, the import and export process of the spruce should be carried out after its barks are peeled.
FEATURES/STRUCTURE
The spruce is a large tree with a straight and cylindrical trunk. It can reach 40 to 50 meters in length and 1 to 1.8 m in width. Its wet weight is generally 790 kg/m3, but its dried weight is around 420 kg/m3. The color of the sapwood and heartwood of the spruce are not divided. Its trunk has the characteristics of sapwood and its color is mostly yellowish-white. Moreover, it has smooth veins with a fine and regular texture. Also its resin ducts are pretty common. Its wood generally has a low weight and medium density. Finally, its wood is not durable and its impregnation is challengeable.
WORKING PROPERTIES
When we look at its working properties, it can be said that spruce wood is easy to process, peel and assemble. It can also be nailed and screwed effortlessly, but it may show a tendency to split when it is nailed. On the other hand, spruce wood generally dries quickly and is not prone to cracking.
AREAS OF USE
The spruce wood is suitable for indoor and outdoor usage. Therefore, it is the essential building and construction timber in Europe. It is generally used for decorative veneering, home flooring, factory flooring, general carpentry, interior construction and joinery. Thanks to its resonance qualities, it is also utilized for soundboards for pianos and bodies of violins and guitars. Finally, we can see the usage of the spruce in the production of boxes, crates, wire poles, mine poles, ship poles, and paper fiber wood.