Abstract
The size of tracheids in conifers and of fibers and vessel segments in dicots has been a subject of investigation for nearly 80 years. Foresters have been interested in woody cell size because of the real or assumed correlation between it and the strength properties of wood and paper, while botanists have been equally interested from the standpoint of its possible relation to evolution, growth and senescence. The present report is a review of the literature from the morphogenetic viewpoint. Special attention is given to the data published rather than to the conclusions previously drawn in an effort to assess the possible interrelationships between cell size of trees and developmental factors of growth and senescence. Because most of the available data apply to the tracheids of gymnosperms, emphasis will be placed on these, but data will be brought in on dicotyledons wherever possible.
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