A series of drying experiments was conducted on plantation grown Poplar（Populus deltoids cv.I-69-55）and Masson’s pine（Pinus massoniana）lumber by three different heating methods,namely,convection,infrared and microwave.This paper determined the drying rate and energy consumption for those three drying methods,and also analyzed how the wood drying characteristics were influenced by the heating methods,wood species and lumber thickness.Results found that:1) The heating method affected the drying rate significantly.One-way hyperbola model indicated that the relationship between heating method and drying rate was close for the convection and infrared method,but not clear for the microwave method;2) The average energy consumption ratio of the 3 heating ways of convection,infrared and microwave,was 1∶1.01∶0.64;3) As for the drying quality,convection drying had a long cycle which easily developed defects such as surface or internal cracks in the wood;microwave drying had a more rapid rate,but was likely to result in internal cracks or carbonization,so it was suitable for slabs;infrared drying was inferior in quality,and was only suitable for thin panels.