Above-ground termite resistance of naturallly durable species in Ontario and Mississippi

A collaborative above-ground protected termite field test was initiated by FPInnovations and the USDA Forest Service at sites in Ontario and Mississippi. The aims of the experiment were to compare the rate of attack in protected, above-ground exposures by the subterranean termite species, Reticulitermes flavipes, between northern (Ontario) and southern (Mississippi) test sites and to generate performance data to understand the resistance to termites of selected naturally durable North American species. After 5-years of exposure, termite attack was greater in untreated pine sapwood controls in Mississippi than Ontario, though similar in the naturally durable species and the MCA-treated reference. All naturally durable heartwoods evaluated were more resistant to termites than untreated controls, and less resistant than the MCA-treated reference. More time is needed to define the service life expectations of naturally durable heartwood species and to determine whether there are differences in their termite resistance.