(or iust another RADIATA PINEI a wonder from down under over rated import?f

I TS SUPPLIERS consider it Super I Pine. Thev sav it's denser than domestic pines,- stronger, better looking, less expensive, faster growing, just as treatable and, best of all, in the face of mounting restrictions on U.S. timber harvests, plentiful in supply and environmentally sound. It's radiata pine and it's coming to a lumbervard near vou.

Story at a Glance

Wood from New Zealand and Chile may ease a U.S. softwood shortage . . radiata pine sup porters claim it's stronger, better looking, cheaper, morc plentiful than domestic pines... its present market status.

The species Pinus radiata (a.k.a. radiata pine, Monterey pine, insignis pine, kiwi pine) is native to Northern California. On its home turf, though, it proved to be a somewhat spindly pine of little commercial value. Yet transplanted to the fertile soils and more hospitable climates of New Zealand, Chile and South Africa (all at about the 35th parallel latitude), the tree will grow tall, straight and quickly - reaching maturity about two-and-a-half times faster than in California.

The light color, medium density softwood is relatively free of knots, easily seasoned and kiln dried from green in under three days, with minimum degrade. It machines, nails, screws, glues, paints and stains well. It is vulnerable to attack by sapstain and boring insects, but treats exceptionally well, without incising.

It's also favorably priced.

"And homogenous," adds Kevin Breen, Snavely Forest Products, San Francisco, Ca. "With a shipment of ponderosa pine, you'll have a wide range from light red to creamy white, different grains, some heartwood, some sapwood. Everything in a shipment of radiata pine will be identical. "

"With the same number of rings per inch, frequency of knots, color, texture, working and finishing characteristics, remanufacturers don't have to worry about quality differences," seconds Marc Seidner, Fibre-Form Wood Products, Rocklin, Ca. "The color is so even a fingerjoint product looks almost as if it's not fi ngerjointed."

Most important is a growing supply. "Some imported species of wood are nice, but the critical question is: 'Can I get it?'The answer is always kinda, sorta," says Breen. "Even if there's lots of resource, what about the political base? Nobody wants to build their future on an inconsistent source of supply."

Snavely has turned to New Zealand. Breen explains, "New Zealand speaks our language, has a good law and order system, growing resources and, with three million people, they can't even begin to consume it all. They're forced into export. And there's no pine market like the U.S."

At one time, New Zealand was a tropical rain forest, blanketed with hardwoods. "The people saw the forest as a barrier and basically took a match to it so they could herd sheep," Breen says. "Then about the turn of the century, they tried to introduce Northern California species. like ponderosa pine. sugar pine, fir, redwood, cedar. Only two took hold: radiata pine and Douglas fir. They have a lot of acreage of Doug- las fir because it grows reasonably wellnot as well as in Northern Cali[ornia."

Just as in America, when the Great Depression hit in the 1930s, the government in New Zealand subsidized massive work projects. They started huge radiata pine plantations, augmented by subsequent incentives.

Trees may reach 90 feet high and three feet wide in as little as 20 years. With a normal 30 to 50 year turnover, more and more plantation

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