The rate of decay of oak, beech, Douglas fir, pine and spruce stakes in an outside test field were compared with the decay rate of the same species in a greenhouse soil-bed test. Strength loss after four and six months respectively was measured by determining the compression strength parallel to the grain. The results show that all species, strength loss in the greenhouse was 2 to 4 times higher than under field conditions. The rate of strength loss correlates with the rate of weight loss.

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