BANGLADESH JOURNAL OF FOREST SCIENCE
A Half-yearly Peer Reviewed Journal of Bangladesh Forest Research Institute
A Half-yearly Peer Reviewed Journal of Bangladesh Forest Research Institute
Based on availability and strength properties, eight indigenous species were selected as alternatives to Garjan for use as railway sleepers.
The sleepers were put to service test in the main track of the Bangladesh Railway. The performance of seven of them has been found satisfactory
and, therefore, are recommended for use as railway sleepers.
The paper includes a field key of 12 species of Bangladesh Loranthaceae based on their leaves and indumentum characters. Brief taxonomic notes on vegetative characters of the species, their flowering time and distribution in Bangladesh have been presented.
Local substitutes for expensively imported malt extract and dextrose in agar media in the form of sugarcane gur and glaxose respectively were investigated. Colony diameter of 14 fungi and mycelial dry weights of 9 fungi were compared on 2 % malt extract agar (MA) and 2,3, 4 and 5% sugarcane gur agar (GA) ; potato dextrose agar (PDA) and potato glaxose agar (PGA). Diameter giowth on 4 % GA and PGA was comparable to 2 % MA and PDA respectively. Four per cent gur is recommended for GA medium. Glaxose is incorporated in PGA at the same rate as dextrose in PDA. Gur frem 4 different localities in Bangladesh incorporating 4% GA resulted in
insignificantly different colony growth of the two fungi tested.
Sundri wood chips were subjected to a mild chemical pre-treatment by soaking them in 1,2 and 3% solutions of NaOH and Na2SO3, individually as well as in mixture, for 24 hours at atmospheric conditions. Hardboards made from pre-treated chips were tested for determining their strength and water resistance properties. It was observed that the boards made from the chips pre-treated with NaOH alone and in mixture with Na2SO3 were stronger than those made by simple steam softening of the chips prior to refining. Also the strength of the hoards increased with an increase of the concentration of the pretreatment solutions. Pre-treatment with NaOH alone produced stronger boards than with the mixtures. Any such effect on the strength property of the boards, however, was not obvious in the pre-treatment with Na2 SO3 solutions. AU the pre-treatment methods adversely affected the water resisting properties of the boards.
Calamus longisetus Griff. (Palmae) has been recorded to be distributed in Andaman Islands, Burma, Thailand, Indonesia and Malay Peninsula (Beccari and Hooker 1892-93 ; Blatter 1926 ; Dransfield 1979 ; Basu and Basu 1987). The various floristic works by. Becaari and Hooker ( 1892—93), Prain (1903a; 1903b), Brandis (1906), Heinig ( 1925), Raizada (1941 ), Sinclair (1955) and Khan et al. (1984), have not recorded its occurrence in the region now under Bangladesh.
Air drying is an important mode of seasoning timber in Bangladesh where sawnjill owners and lumber dealers can hardly afford to possess modern dry kilns. Due to lack of adequate knowledge and absence of proper drying schedule, the method is not being practised effectively to get the best result. It is, therefore, considered ‘partinent to study the air drying characteristics of some of the important wood species of Bangladesh.
The establishment of efficient drying schedules for various species is dependent upon the rate at which a given species loses moisture. This is, also, affected by the drying condition existing in a particular region at any given time of the year. The present paper deals with the rate of moisture loss and air drying time of 10 indigenous wood species of Bangladesh under two conditions of exposure.
The paper examines the profitability of teak ( tectona grandis, Lin. f) plantations under the existing system of management in Bangladesh. The Forest Department has fixed 69 years as the rotation length for teak on all sites. Land expectation values have been calculated on the basis of the Faustmann formula and preliminary yield tables for three site qualities. They have been calculated on the assumption that the sites would be used for teak plantations for an infinite number of 60 year rotations. The sensitivity of results to changes in the planting and overhead costs and in yields was also calculated. The result indicates positive net returns for sites of qualities I to III under all cost conditions at an eight percent rate of interest. At thirteen percent, sites of qualities I and II show a positive result but those of quality III indicate a net loss Land expectation values are not found to be a convenient index of profita
The lack of knowledge of treatability of timber species with pressure method may result in poor treatment in respect of penetration and retention of the preservative chemical Inwood. This knowledge for our indigenous timber species was not ascertained before. The relative penetrability of nineteen timber species was, therefore, determined with Lowry empty cell process using 40:60 creosote and light diesel oil mixture.
Specific gravity of species did not seem to have any bearing on the penetration cf preservative. Grain structure and presence of tyloses appeared to be correlated with penetrability of the wood. The species were classified into four treatability groups according to the degree of heartwood penetrability.
The paper outlines the forest products and forest management research works so far undertaken at the Forest Research Institute of Bangladesh in order to evaluate their contributions in accelerating the process of structural transformation of the economy of Bangladesh. It is observed that forestry and forest industrial research can play a vital role in generating economic forces for big push which is an essential prerequisite for breaking the vicious circle emanating from the dual character of the economy. Attention is given to provide a qualitative assessment of flow of spread effects from forest research to the overall productivity of the economy. Major problem of research management is pointed out in order to develop background discussion for a research diffusion model compatible with the national goal of optimum rate of structural change.
Experiments to determine the role of wounding and fungal infestation in the formation of the aromatic base, agar, in the wood of Agar tree
(Aquilaria agallocha Roxb.) were conducted. Inoculation with wounding using three fungal isolates from agar, as well as, wounding without inoculant, produced colour changes and oleoresin deposits, in the host characteristic of agar. It was inferred that the formation of agar did not depend on the activity of a special fungus, as was previously believed, but is a general reaction of the host to injury or invasion.
The possibility of the development of techniques for the commercial induction of agar in A. agallocha is discussed.
Welcome to the Bangladesh Journal of Forest Science (BJFS) – a leading platform for advancing the knowledge and understanding of forest science in Bangladesh and beyond. Established with a commitment to excellence, BJFS serves as a cornerstone for researchers, practitioners, and enthusiasts dedicated to the sustainable management and conservation of forest ecosystems.
