The Nevada County picayune. (Prescott, Ark.) 190?-current, 1910-08-16

Fire is the greatest source of injury TO eu
calvptus plantations Roth the natural eharac'
teristics of the trees and The conditions within
planted groves render them peculiarly sascep'
tible to fire injury The large quantity of lit
ter-drv leaves, branches and shredded bark
which aceHmulates beneath q stand is extreme
" infammabe The bark of eucalyptus Is SO
thin that the trees are injured even by light
surface fires
The wood Of blue gum is very heavy, hard,
strong and tough but Is not durable In contact
with the soil. It is close.grained, and Is split
with difficulty after it has dried Il is less elias.
tic than hickory but 1t has been demonstrated
by mechanical tests that seasoned blue gum
timber is little inferior In strength and stif.
ness to the best second-growth hickory. In ap.
pearance it closely resembles the wood OF hick'
DRY and ash
Blue-gum timber IS utilized for a great vari.
ETY. of purposes In California The wood Is ex-
ceilent for fuel and In the treeless valleys has
been the chief fuel supply for many years. In
southern California the steady demand renders
commercial planting for fuel very profitable,
Eucalyptus timber has been extensively used in
California for wharf piling Bluegum piles are
In use In nearly every port on the California
coast and extended trial has shown that they
resist the attacks of marine borers which de-
species commonly used for piling. Blue-gum
timber has also been used to some extent for
fence posts and telephone poles. The wood is
not suitable for this purpose, however, on &C
count of its short life in the ground Seasoned
posts last little longer than green posts. and
timber cut from the heart is more durable than
sapwood.
Blue-gum timber has been used to a limited
extent to determine its value for railroad ties
The results thus far obtained indicate that It
compares favorably with nd-grade pine-tis
timber.
The lumber has been extensively used for ve-
hicle stock and for wooden parts of agricultural
implements It is also made into insulator pins
for electric wiring, and Is used for furniture
and cabinet work hardwood flooring trip-ham-
mer beams, the levers of wndasses, and the
blocking for oil and wine presses, wood paving
pulley blocks and belt wheels
The extensive utilization of gum lumber has
hitherto been prevented by the seanty supply OF
timber OF merehantable size and by the diff
Guilty experienced in seasoning the lumber with
out "arping and checking 1t IS believed, how
ever, that in the seasoning of gum no greater
difficulties will be encountered than in season
ing OF any other hardwood Of similar density
and strength
A product of considerable importance derived
from blue gum is the oil distilled from the
leaves. Eucalyptus oil is recognized as a yalu-
able drug and IS extensively used by pharma
eists and physicians
In many valleys Of California eucalyptus
"indbreaks are considered absolutely necessary
70 insure the successful production of crops
lhey nave been NEST extensively used to safe
guard citrus orchards from strong and d.
structlYe winds In southern California but thav
are now being established also for the nro
lection OF vineyards and orchards of deciduoua
fruits, olives and walnuts The blue gum or
cels otner species for windbreak purposes ON
account OF Its height and the rapidly OF its
growth The tall shafts of the trees bend ha
fore the wind and act as a cushion 10 defaot y
upward over the orchard whereas ord,rorv
~lhd-oreak trees form a mere solid wall. and
the wind draws downward. forming eddies near
the leeWard side AS'''
eucalyptus reproduce readily by both seeds
ana sprouts The trees bear seed in abun.
dahce annually, and under favorable conditions
natural reproduction is freely established
trees also sprout vigorously from both the
stump and the roots, either after cutting or IN
response TO injury. In California commercial
sprouts. ~
Plantations should be started with Young
aees ana not by direct sowing. The opinion
% seherally held that eucalyptus seedlings ara
90 uncut to raise that their propagation "a
.ipiaeucaole except for expert nurservman
IA punt OF TACT, blue gum Is one of tho most
easily J 'orsgoted ~ ,c,ea