sapwood

[ sap-wood ]

noun

, Botany.

1. the softer part of the wood between the inner bark and the heartwood.

sapwood

/ ˈsæpˌwʊd /

noun

1. See heartwood
   the soft wood, just beneath the bark in tree trunks, that consists of living tissue Compare heartwood

sapwood

/ săp′wd′ /

1. The younger layers of new wood produced by the interior side of the vascular cambium within a tree trunk. Sapwood is active in the conduction of water and is usually lighter in color than heartwood.

Word History and Origins

Origin of sapwood¹

First recorded in 1785–95; sap ¹ + wood ¹

Example Sentences

How to tap a treeDrill a hole through the bark, about 2 inches into the sapwood, angling the hole upward.

From Popular-Science

Diseases of the sapwood cut off the water supply, which is pumped upward from the roots.

From Project Gutenberg

Upon exposure by a wound, the sapwood just underneath the bark dies, dries out, and checks.

From Project Gutenberg

A feller that kin kick like that didn't orter be called Sapwood nor Saphead nor Sapanything.

From Project Gutenberg

It is a bright red-brown with a thin outer edge of paler sapwood.

From Project Gutenberg

This external evidence should be supplemented by cutting down to the sapwood.

From Project Gutenberg