DETERMINATION OF THE AGE OF PINUS-OCCIDENTALIS IN LA-CELESTINA, DOMINICAN-REPUBLIC, BY THE USE OF GROWTH RINGS

The growth rings of Pinus occidentalis Swartz trees in La Celestina, D ominican Republic, show between-tree uniformity. With difficulty, two mean time series were made from ring widths of 1) all visible, includi ng intra-annual, rings and 2) groups of rings that were hypothesized t o be annual. Both were compared with a 63-year range of rainfall data. An annual periodicity in wood formation is present, but obscured by m any intra-annual rings. The annual periodicity of the trees may be a r emnant of their possible origin from higher altitudes, where frosts ma y occur during the cold season. The youngest of the 7 investigated tre es was about 39 years old; the oldest about 46 years. These seven tree s contain between approximately 2 and 6 growth rings per year, with an average of about 3.5-4.