Teak (Tectona grandis) morphologically can reach a height of 30-45 meters. The diameter of the stem can reach 220 cm. Even though the tree is dead, the roots of the teak tree can be stored safely in the ground for hundreds of years. Wow, fantastic!
There are a few unique stories about the age of teak trees that can reach up to tens to hundreds of years. A layman can actually calculate the age of teak from the “circle of years” owned by the teak trunk. This can happen because the cambium of teak wood has cells that produce vertical and horizontal extensions, starting with the development of an elongated oval-shaped cell nucleus, then dividing into 2 cells and so on. In the dry season, the teak leaves will fall and at that time the cambiun will grow narrower. And during the rainy season, the leaves will grow and the cambiun will grow normally again. The difference in growth will form a beautiful pattern when the teak trunk is cut crosswise. Well, this is what the year circle pattern says.
The second uniqueness is that teak is not easy for termites to eat. Because teak has 46.5% cellulose content, 29.9% lignin, 14.4% pentosan, 1.4% ash, and 0.4% silica and a calorific value of 5.081 cal/gr. The durability of wood according to the test results against termites and fungi belongs to class I. Thus, teak wood can be attacked by termites with low capacity in the condition of the wood which is influenced by the age of the tree. So the older the age of teak wood, the more difficult it is to attack termites.
So that’s its uniqueness, it is understandable that teak roots that can reach hundreds of years buried in the ground are more durable and are not liked by termites and fungi.
