Eucalyptus for Hardwood 



By Abbot Kinney. 



Popular interest in the planting of Eucalyptus has in- 

 creased. This increased interest is due to the realization of 

 the proximate exhaustion of the Native American hardwoods. 

 Our hardwoods are not only becoming scarce and expensive, 

 but no new natural supply is in sight. Nor will the care of 

 the forester fully remedy the situation. This is because of 

 the slow growth of the Native hardwoods. The Eucalypti 

 alone give any promise of filling any portion of the growing 

 demand for hardwoods within a reasonable time. 



The genus Eucalyptus is native to Australasia. Australia 

 and Tasmania are the source of supply of all the species known 

 to be of commercial value. Not one species of Eucalyptus is 

 native to New Zealand, and only a few are found in New 

 Guinea, Timor and neighboring tropical islands near Aus- 

 tralia. 



None of the species will tolerate much frost. Eighteen 

 to twenty degrees Fahrenheit is the limit of safety for the 

 hardiest commercial kinds. 



The commercial planting of Eucalyptus is consequently 

 restricted to California or so nearly so, on account of climate, 

 that we can say that within the United States, California has 

 a natural monopoly in the commercial production of the trees 

 of this genus. 



The most valuable species of Eucalyptus have several 

 exceedingly attractive qualities for private commercial plant- 

 ing. 



The first of these is rapidity of growth. It is a moderate 

 statement that the E. globulus or common blue gum will pro- 

 duce a good crop of wood in from ten to fifteen years. 



Second — The Eucalyptus in the Californian experience will 

 produce well in solid plantation of one kind or species. The 

 importance of this will be realized when the fact is recalled 

 that the general forestry practice is to plant other hardwoods 

 in mixed plantations for good results. The economy of han- 

 dling solid groves of one kind of tree is an important advant- 

 age that the Eucalypti so far have been found to have in 

 California. 



Third — Rapid growth from the stump after cutting. 

 There appears to be no limit to the number of times that most 

 Euealyptus trees will make a new and valuable growth. 



This new or pollard growth should be thinned out about 



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