Beetle Kill Blue Stain Pine
Posted: September 27, 2011
Most of our customers know we live in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. What many don’t know is that a small little beetle (Mountain Pine Beetle) about the size of a grain of rice has killed millions of acres across Montana, the Western U.S., and Canada.
So what happens to these trees?
After the beetle kills the tree it becomes known as “Standing Dead Timber“. If harvested within a couple of years these trees can still be used in the building industry. If not harvested within a couple years these trees are left to rot and fall over which results in millions of board feet of kindling in our forests. More often than not these dead standing trees become fuel for future catastrophic wildfires.
Is the wood still good?
After the tree dies the only evidence that remains is something called “Blue Stain“. Once dead, these trees develop a blue and brown stain within the wood fibers. The stain is not a defect and the structural integrity of the wood remains intact.
What is Sustainable Lumber Co. doing about this?
In cooperation with other Montana mills and loggers, we are developing new products for this Montana Blue Pine. The blue stain dances and weaves throughout the wood fibers, producing an original piece of artwork only Mother Nature could produce.
What is Sustainable Lumber Co. Montana Beetle Killed Blue Pine available in?
