One of the six PhD students in the FRAS research school, my current project investigates the use of birch stock bred by Skogforsk in south Sweden. Overall I hope to relate the external form of birch to the mechanical properties of birch wood, and will later investigate birch quality in mixed stands with SLU.
Broadleaved species are becoming better recognised as an important part of the Swedish forest, and birch is already present in abundant numbers. I hope the findings of this research will help inform forest managers about the solid wood they can get from their birch trees. Most of the birch in Sweden is currently used as fuel or pulp, but by identifying the best conditions, we can hope to measure and improve the quality of birch wood.
Forskning
Birch in south Sweden
Wood mechanical properties (stiffness, density, grain angle) and stem form (physicial properties like branch frequency and diameter) measurements
Family trials with Skogforsk and Silviculture work with SLU
https://www.slu.se/ew-nyheter/2018/10/fras-press-release-grace/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-jones-48b572124/