TWENTY YEARS GROWTH OF DEBUDDED RED PINE

In 1942 an experiment was begun to determine the possibility of producing knot-free red pine by removing the lateral buds annually until the required knot-free bole length had been produced.Starting with a 6-year-old red pine plantation, a knot-free 16.5-foot length of bole was produced in 9 years. Ten years later, when the debudded trees had developed normal crowns, the debudded trees averaged 1 inch less in diameter and 6 feet less in height than the control trees. The only apparent advantage in debudding is that clear lumber of a given width can be produced about 20 years earlier than by conventional saw pruning. Poorer quality wood, owing to the presence of compression wood and juvenile core wood, may nullify this advantage of earlier production.