Rediscovering boron

摘要

ELIZABETH HOWARTH'S ARTICLE ON BORON in the last issue of Inwood generated a lot of comment and unearthed some strong feelings, particularly in New Zealand. At the risk of entering into a highly charged situation and bearing in mind that this column does not espouse any particular commercial bias, I want to examine the issues in a balanced and factual manner. Boron in the form of its oxides and salts is a remarkably effective natural wood preservative with a broad range of activity against decay fungi, borers and even termites. And best of all for long-suffering producers, its price is not going through the roof like most base metals and oil.