The genus Arbutus contains about 15 species with 5 in North America and about 10 in Europe and western Asia. The name arbutus is the classical Latin name of Arbutus unedo L., strawberry madrone, of southern Europe.
Arbutus arizonica Arizona madrone, Arizona madroño, madroña
Arbutus menziesii* arbuti tree, coast madrone, laurel, laurelwood, madroña, madroña burr, madrone, madrone laurel, madrone tree, madroño, madroña, manzanita, Pacific madrone, strawberry-tree
Arbutus texana laurel, madroña, madrone,
madrone tree, manzanita,
Texas madrone, Texas madroño
Arbutus unedo strawberry tree (Europe)
*commercial species
The following data are for Arbutus menziesii.
Distribution: Southwestern British Columbia and southward
through Washington,
Oregon and California in the coastal mountains and wet slopes
of the Sierra Nevada.
The Tree: Pacific madrone grows to 80 ft (24 m) tall, with a diameter of 2 to 3 ft (0.6 to 1 m). It has orange branches with shiny leaves, small white flowers in clusters, and orange–red fruits.
General Wood Characteristics: Pacific madrone sapwood is a pinkish-cream color, while the heartwood is light pink to red-brown with patches of deep red. It resembles fruit woods in color and texture.
Weighta
Weight
Moisture Specific lb/ft3 kg/m3
content gravity
Green 0.58 60 961
12% 0.65 45 721
Ovendry 0.69 NA NA
aReference (59).
Mechanical propertiesa
Property Green Dry
MOE 0.88 106 6.0667 GPa 1.23 106 8.481 GPA
lbf/in2 lbf/in2
MOR 7.60 103 52.402 MPa 10.4 103 71.708 MPa
lbf/in2 lbf/in2
C| | 3.32 103 22.891 MPa 6.88 103 47.438MPa
lbf/in2 lbf/in2
C 0.78 103 5.378 MPa 1.62 103 11.170 MPa
lbf/in2 lbf/in2
WML 11.2 77.224 kJ/m3 8.8 in-lbf/in3 60.676
in-lbf/in3 kJ/m3
Hardness 940 lbf 4,181.12 N 1,460 lbf 6,494.08 N
Shear| | 1.42 103 9.791 MPa 1.81 103 12.480 MPa
lbf/in2 lbf/in2
aReference (59).
Drying and shrinkagea
Percentage of shrinkage
(green to final moisture
content)b
Type of 0% MC 6% MC 20% MC
shrinkage
Tangential 12.4 9.9 4.1
Radial 5.6 4.5 1.9
Volumetric 18.1 14.5 6.0
aPacific madrone is difficult to season
because it warps and checks easily.
Schedules for drying the wood green
from the saw have been published
(30,93). Smith (88) suggests air
drying, followed by kiln drying.
bReferences: 0% MC (98), 6% and 20% MC
(90).
Kiln drying schedulea
4/4, 5/4, 8/4 10/4 12/4 16/4
Condition 6/4 stock stock stock stock
stock
Standard T4-B2 T3-B1 NA NA NA
aReferences (6, 86).
Working Properties: Pacific madrone works well with all tools and polishes well, but it is not easily glued. The wood is easily worked with tools and compares with hard maple and eastern white oak in ease of machining (25). Work at the Forest Products Laboratory has indicated that rotary cutting of veneer is feasible (84).
Durability: The wood is nonresistant to heartwood decay; fence posts had an average service life of 6 years in the untreated condition (36).
Preservation: No information available at this time.
Uses: Turnery, bowls, novelties, souvenirs, tool handles, mathematical instruments, furniture and bowls. Burls are used for pipes and decorative veneers; charcoal for gunpowder.
Toxicity: No information available at this time.
Additional Reading: 29, 55, 67, 68, 74, 83. 55, 66, 68, 74, 79. 28, 29, 42, 43, 44, 48, 50, 55, 56, 68, 72, 73, 74, 79, 92, 97, 102. 74, 75, 77, 99, 106.