Treatment of wood that makes it poisonous to insects, fungi, and marine borers?

• A. Wood treatment
• B. Wood finishing
• C. Staining
• D. Wood drying

Answer: (A)

Wood treatment is the process of impregnating wood with preservatives that make it toxic or repellent to insects, fungi, and marine borers. This provides protection throughout the wood, which is essential for timber used where it contacts soil, moisture, or water, and where decay or pest attack would be most damaging. Finishing or staining mainly changes appearance and provides a surface barrier, but they don’t create the internal toxicity or long-term protection that pests and fungi require. Drying lowers moisture content to slow decay but doesn’t offer ongoing chemical protection against pests. Therefore, the method that makes wood poisonous to these organisms is wood treatment.