  The density matrix renormalization group method for ladders works much more
efficiently with open boundary conditions. One consequence of these boundary
conditions is groundstate charge density oscillations that often appear to be
nearly constant in magnitude or to decay only slightly away from the
boundaries. We analyse these using bosonization techniques, relating their
detailed form to the correlation exponent and distinguishing boundary induced
generalized Friedel oscillations from true charge density waves. We also
discuss a different approach to extracting the correlation exponent from the
finite size spectrum which uses exclusively open boundary conditions and can
therefore take advantage of data for much larger system sizes. A general
discussion of the Friedel oscillation wave-vectors is given, and a convenient
Fourier transform technique is used to determine it. DMRG results are analysed
on Hubbard and t-J chains and 2 leg t-J ladders. We present evidence for the
existence of a long-ranged charge density wave state in the t-J ladder at a
filling of n=0.75 and near J/t \approx 0.25.
