[net.rec.wood] Exotic Hardwoods

mauney@ncsu.UUCP (Jon Mauney) (06/28/85)

There are lots of beautiful exotic hardwoods I would like to play
with (as budget permits), such as rosewood, wenge, Macassar ebony.
However, I don't want to be party to any wholesale destruction of
fragile ecologies (and don't forget that many North American songbirds
depend on South American forests for their winter vacations).

Does anyone know which woods are harvested in a responsible manner
and which are obtained by clearcutting without reforestation?  Or
where such information might be obtained?  Any discussion?
-- 

Jon Mauney,    mcnc!ncsu!mauney
North Carolina State University

(how much wood could a woodbutcher butcher,
 if a woodbutcher could butcher wood?)

fred@mnetor.UUCP (Fred Williams) (07/04/85)

In article <2878@ncsu.UUCP> mauney@ncsu.UUCP (Jon Mauney) writes:
>There are lots of beautiful exotic hardwoods I would like to play
>with (as budget permits), such as rosewood, wenge, Macassar ebony.
>However, I don't want to be party to any wholesale destruction of
>fragile ecologies (and don't forget that many North American songbirds
>depend on South American forests for their winter vacations).
>
>Does anyone know which woods are harvested in a responsible manner
>and which are obtained by clearcutting without reforestation?  Or
>where such information might be obtained?  Any discussion?
>-- 

	I had the same concerns and arrived at a solution. 
		REFORESTATION.
	Just plant new trees of the type you are using.  You don't
have to limit yourself to your own land. Many people are delighted
to have someone plant an oak tree for them, or whatever type of tree
you have. 
	I just planted 2 cherry trees in my own back yard. After a few
years I'll be able to bake pies for decades if I don't move. Then,
when the trees are old they will make excellent lumber. I'll keep
the branches trimmed properly to allow for straight trunks. This
makes the cherries harder to pick, but I'll manage.
	Maybe we could get more net.rec.wood people planting trees!?
	It would be a good project for us all.

Cheers,		Fred Williams

mike@amdcad.UUCP (Mike Parker) (07/09/85)

In article <1152@mnetor.UUCP>, fred@mnetor.UUCP (Fred Williams) writes:
> 	Maybe we could get more net.rec.wood people planting trees!?
> 	It would be a good project for us all.
> 
> Cheers,		Fred Williams

Excellent idea! Thanks.

Mike

mauney@ncsu.UUCP (Jon Mauney) (07/10/85)

>	I had the same concerns and arrived at a solution. 
>		REFORESTATION.
>	Just plant new trees of the type you are using.

While I agree whole-heartedly that this is an excellent idea,
it doesn't work for exotic woods.  I sincerely doubt that 
rosewood, teak, or pink ivory can be grown successfully in most of
countries on the net.  Therefore, I am still interested in finding
out how responsible other countries are about raping their own
forests.

(Or perhaps we would be doing those countries a favor by removing
all their trees; then the nasty Marxist revolutionary guerillas would
have fewer places to hide. :-)
-- 

Jon Mauney,    mcnc!ncsu!mauney
North Carolina State University