The Hans Merensky Chair in Advanced Modelling of Eucalypt Wood Formation
Understanding xylogenesis in the world's most widely planted hardwood species
Post authored by Prof Dave Drew
Dave Drew was part of the team of authors led by Dr. Annemarie Eckes-Shepard who recently had a new paper, entitled “Wood formation modelling – a research review and future perspectives”, published in Frontiers in Plant Science.
This is a comprehensive review, covering 16 wood formation models (WFMs) from three different disciplines, the earliest from 1968 and the latest from 2020. It is the first systematic cataloging, characterisation, and process-focused review of WFMs. Some important areas for future research are identified: (1) the extent of hormonal influence on the final tree ring structure; (2) the mechanism underlying the transition from earlywood to latewood in extratropical regions; and (3) the extent to which carbon plays a role as `active’ driver or `passive’ substrate for growth.
The abstract of the article is available here, pending final quality checks.