Specific gravity and fiber length of some hybrid poplars growing in West Virginia

THE wood of the poplars and their hybrids is widely used in Europe for veneers, building lumber, box lumber, and pulpwood (7) . In the United States the aspens, Populus tremuloides Michx. and P. grandi-dentata Michx., are important as pulpwood species and to a lesser extent for corestock, match wood, crating, and excelsior (2) . The cottonwoods, particularly P. deltoides Bartr., are sought after for factory and box lumber, package and commercial veneer, and pulpwood (6) . In 1951, 50 hybrid poplar clones developed by the Northeastern Forest Experiment Station were outplanted in West Virginia as part of a region-wide test. Thirteen of these clones (Table 1) , all of which have one parent from the section Tacamahaca, have been outstanding in their survival and growth. Eschner (3) reported the growth of these clones in 1960 but there is little published information concerning their wood properties. As a result, a cooperative study was undertaken by the Northeastern Forest Experiment Station and West Virginia University to deter-mine the fiber length and specific gravity of these clones.