Feeding Bark, 2022

The ‘Feeding Bark’ project is exploring the potential uses of native tree bark, using larch as an example. The crucial criteria for the selection of this material were the prominent feeding traces of the bark beetle, which occurred as a result of the local climate-related drought period (2018-2020).

As the beetle reproduces in the bast under the bark, it leaves behind distinctive feeding tunnels that weaken the tree and ultimately lead to its death. To prevent the pest from spreading further, the affected tree must be felled. As a result of this damage, large areas of forest are destroyed every year, while at the same time enormous quantities of unused bark material are produced.

At present, this material is hardly used in industry, apart from applications such as bark mulch or thermal utilisation. As a result, bark remains largely an industrial waste material. In the course of evolution, bark has developed into a highly specialised material that protects the sensitive cambium (the growth layer) and is particularly resistant to heat and frost. Due to its high diffusion openness and heat storage capacity, bark is also ideal as an insulating material.

The aim of the project is to valorise the waste product of tree bark and, in particular, to emphasise the aesthetic significance of the bark beetle's feeding galleries. At the same time, the industrial potential of the bark is being tapped. Only sustainable, traditional methods such as glutin gluing were used to ensure the environmental friendliness of this local natural material.

// 2022

Supervision Prof. Vincenz Warnke and Michael Schauerhammer

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