Wood anatomy of the dicotyledons indigenous to New Zealand 15. Fagaceae

Abstract

The wood anatomy of Nothofagus menziesii (Hook, f.) Oerst., N. fusca (Hook, f.) Oerst., N. truncala (Col.) Ckn., N. solandri (Hook, f.) Oerst. var. solandri, and N. solandri var. cliffortioides (Hook, f.) Poole, is described. The wood is diffuse-porous to semi-ring-porous with distinct growth-rings. Vessels are solitary and in multiples, mainly of the radial type. Perforation plates are simple but some scalariform and reticulate plates also occur. Intervessel pits are alternate, opposite, and scalariform. Minute projections from cell wall into lumen are sometimes present in the tips of vessel elements. Vessel-ray pits are usually confined to ray margins and are round, oval, and radially elongated with or without border. Axial parenchyma is scarce and mostly confined to growth-ring boundaries. Polygonal crystals are occasionally present in axial parenchyma. Rays are heterogeneous and 1–2(3) cells wide. Fibres are sometimes septate. Tracheids are present in late-wood. The presence of silica grains in the rays readily separates N. truncata and the two varieties of N. solandri from N. menziesii and N. fusca. Further separation using growth-ring and ray characteristics is discussed.