Natural cork. Part I. Cork oak tree culture, macro- and micromorphology of cork

Cork is the bark of the cork oak tree cultivated mainly in Portugal and the Mediterranean region. As amaterial it has been used for more than 5000 years. Nowadays, it is used in multiple applications, from wine bottles to aeronautics and regarded as astrategic material for sustainable development in many countries. The first part of the presented review is focused on cultivation aspects of cork oak trees as well as morphology (at macro- and microscales) and chemical structure of suberin, the main constituent of cork. The honeycomb-like cork structure makes it one of the best natural, renewable, sustainable raw material, which is used all over the world.