They grow straight because they are shoots/suckers, and that's how tree biology works. And they are pruned every two years to prevent knots and side branches.
The lumber is dense/strong because the shoots have a robustness advantage due to being part of a mature tree with all its resources.
Isn't this just Pollarding and/or Coppicing, which have been practiced for at least 2000 years in Europe (and probably many other cultures as well), with a healthy dose of orientalism added on top?
Please link a photo of a coppice/pollard in Europe that's as straight as this, along with the location where I can see it.
If you do, I have got a great new travel destination. If you don't then everyone else (and hopefully you too) will understand why people think this is special enough to link beyond the fact that it happens to be in Japan.
The article is pretty light on details. Essentially, the tree is first pruned to create a wide and sturdy base; once that's stable, subsequent shoots from the branches are pruned to grow vertically. The technique relies on this particular variety of cedar which tends to grow vertically but can also be made to spread out a bit. It has some advantages in space-saving and efficiency but it's also very labor-intensive.
When doing coppicing it's definitely something to be careful with. Once started, the trees needs to be cared for regularly. E.g. on the ash trees I have, it needs to be "harvested" every 8 to 9 years. If you fail to do that there's the risk of the tree splitting because of the weight but also branches breaking indeed in case of storms.
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[ 2.8 ms ] story [ 35.7 ms ] thread> the lumber produced in this method is 140% as flexible as standard cedar and 200% as dense/strong,
?
The lumber is dense/strong because the shoots have a robustness advantage due to being part of a mature tree with all its resources.
If you do, I have got a great new travel destination. If you don't then everyone else (and hopefully you too) will understand why people think this is special enough to link beyond the fact that it happens to be in Japan.
https://xcancel.com/wrathofgnon/status/1250287741247426565
Some previous discussions:
2023: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37759366
2021: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26941631
Same discussion 3 years ago
Somehow I keep thinking Mad Max where women were kept just to produce baby and milk, or Alien where alien "subtree" sprouted from human "tree".
I guess nature/human is cruel?
https://www.agroforesterie.fr/la-trogne-arbre-paysan-aux-mil...
Other countries do it too :
https://trognes.fr/trognes/trognes-a-travers-le-monde/