What is Radiata Pine?
* Radiata Pine is a fast-maturing and adaptive softwood native to the United States. * Since its introduction in New Zealand in the 1950s, it has become a popular softwood throughout the Southern Hemisphere, with significant concentrations in New Zealand, Australia, Chile, and South Africa. New Zealand and Chile lead in Radiata growth with about 2 million hectares (5 million acres) of plantation forests, with large logs of up to 80cm diameter and growing cycles of 25 to 30 years. Commercial cultivation also extends to countries such as as Spain, France, Argentina, Greece, and India. Ironically, it has since become a threatened species in the coastal region of central California from which it originated. * Selective breeding practices began in New Zealand in the 1960s and have since advanced the growth and form characteristics of native Radiata. Today the focus of such programmes is on specific traits such as disease resistance and straight grain. * Radiata is now a common and accepted
