What does the term Spalted mean?
Spalting is a term that usually describes the “pencil line” characteristics and varied grain color changes that occur as species of wood begin to decay. The various types of fungus set up “boundries” and these are what we see as the defined sharp lines. Different spiecies of wood attract different fungus (location has alot to do with this too) and that’s why the spalting in certain woods appears similar to other pieces of the same wood. Not surprisingly, there is a fine line between Spalted and Rotten, and so it’s usually a prized characteristic in wood – the Spalting I mean, not the Rotten.
