Why is wood blue

The price was right but the wood is full of blue stain. Is it safe to use this wood for painted projects or as a secondary wood? Blue stain is a common fungus that infects the sapwood of freshly sawn boards causing a blue discoloration in pine. The infestation most often occurs during the summer months when freshly sawn boards are exposed to the open air before kiln drying. The color can range from a striking blue to a dull gray or black. Petersen told us that blue stain is a non-destructive fungus that has little or no effect on the structural integrity of the wood, so it is safe to use in terms of strength.

Guaranteed Quality Timber. About iWood. Log In. Email: Password: Forgotten your password? VAT inc. As an Amazon Associate, we earn a commission from qualifying purchases. Edit Page Bad generic Bad formatting Bad editorial. How to Tell the Difference in Blue Stain and Mold A reader writes in with admiration for log and timber homes with a bluish tint but wants to know if that's intentional, and more importantly, safe The fungus also benefits the beetles by improving the host environment for the beetle progeny, and serves as food for the larvae and adult beetles.

In a published study comparing beetle success in the presence and absence of the fungi, the beetles were unable to reproduce in the absence of the fungi. Although the fungi alone can kill host trees, the combined action of the fungi and the beetles is responsible for the rapid death of the tree.

So here we have a deadly combination. According to the USDA, the mountain pine beetle and fungus has impacted trees more than miles of trails, 4, miles of road, and 47, acres of developed recreation sites over 6.

It has a hard black exoskeleton and is about the size of a grain of rice. They inhabit lodgepole, Scotch, ponderosa and limber pine trees.

During the early stages of an outbreak, attacks are limited largely to trees under stress or old age. As beetle populations increase, the beetles attack the largest trees in the outbreak area such as high-risk lodgepole pine stands that are more than 80 years old with an average diameter of more than 8 inches. The mountain pine beetle begins attacking most pine species on the lower 15 feet of the trunk.

They need adequate food, found in large-diameter trees, for their population to build up. After the larger lodgepole pines are killed, beetles infest smaller and smaller trees, where phloem is thin and excessive drying occurs.

This is the innermost layer of bark which is where food goes from the leaves, down through the branches and trunk to the roots.