AND HORTICULTURIST. 



149 



rollers in machinery, and is rather scarce. The 

 trunks of four trees, containing only 200 cubic 

 feet, on the estate of the Earl of Wilton, re- 

 cently sold for S125, which is considered very 

 high for timber in England. 



Big Trees in Australia. — These do not seem 

 to be confined to Blue Gums. The Nelson Daily 

 Times of New Zealand states that a gigantic 

 Black Bii'ch tree was felled recently by a 

 surveyor's party at Staley Creek, near Ahaura. 

 It is stated to have measured fifty-seven feet in 

 circumference at the butt. But this "Black 

 Birch" must not be confounded with the Amer- 

 ican Black Birch — Betula rubra — though that 

 sometimes gro\*s to a very large size. 



Notes on Tree-planting.— Prof. C. S. Sar- 

 gant. Director of the Botanic Garden and Ar- 

 boretum of Harvard University , has issued a very 

 interesting pamphlet on the subject. He re- 

 marks on the Red Pine, "Wild Black Cherry" 

 — Ulmus racemosa — Ailanthus,with minor notes 

 on other timber trees. 



BiRNAM Woods. — Every reader of Shakes- 

 peare knows all about Birnam woods, as men- 

 tioned in Macbeth. From the Journal of Fores- 

 try we learn that three of the trees are yet 

 standing — two Oaks and one Plane tree — they 

 being over 1000 years old. Yet they are not 

 extra large for their age. The Oak is 18 feet, 

 and the Plane 19 feet 8 inches. 



Oak Staves. — Louisiana and Mississippi are 

 asking why some Northern men do not come 

 down there and go into the oak stave business, 

 instead of building up th se industries in the 

 West, as the Oak is so abundant in these States. 

 It seems a strange question to ask. People gen- 

 erally go where they see other people making 

 money. 



Coffee in California. — The Los Angeles 

 Express says that Badillo Brothers, of that place, 

 have fruited the genuine Arabian Coffee, but 

 that the success was not proportionate to the 

 labor and expense attending it. 



Trees in North Carolina. — The following 

 are the dimensions of some North Carolina trees, 

 as reported from Cherokee county by the Board 

 of Agriculture of that State : 



White Oak, 13 feet 4 inches in circumference, 

 and 50 feet to first limb ; Yellow Locust, 10 feet 

 circumferenc • , and 60 feet to first limb : Chestnut, 

 18 feet 6 inches in circumference ; Poplar, 11 feet 



9 inches in circumference, 70 feet to first limb. 

 Poplar, 11 feet in circumference ,7 feet to first limb 

 Yellow Locust, 7 feet 7 inches in circumferennce 

 45 feet to first limb \ Shingle Oak, 11 feet in cir- 

 cumference, 60 feet to first limb ; Black Gum, 9 

 feet 7 inches in circumference, 40 feet to first 

 limb; Hickory, 9 feet in circumference, 50 feet 

 to first limb; Grape Vine at Valley Town, 18 

 inches in circumference. 



The Mammoth Trees of California. — 

 Two thousand acres, including the famous mam- 

 moth grove of Sequoia gigantea, were recently 

 sold at public sale to S. W. Sperry, of Calaveras 

 county, who, if is believed, will take good care 

 of them. 



SCRAPS AND QUERIES. 



Value of Cherry Timber. — A correspon- 

 dent asks : " Why do you think the wood of the 

 escaped Garden Cherry is better for cabinet work 

 than that of C.serotirui? See G. Monthly, p. 144, 

 April No. Have you ever seen the former used? 

 and when and where shown. lam interested in the 

 subject of this Wild Cherry wood, as you have 

 seen , if you have read my last ' Notes ;' but 1 

 want to get any additional information I can on 

 the subject. So your paragraph at once arrested 

 my attention and causes this inquu-y." 



[The Wild Cherry, which is indigenous (Ce- 

 rasus serotina), and the Wild Cherry which is an 

 escape from our gardens, are both in abundance 

 in the vicinity of Philadelphia. One is as easy 

 to be obtained as the other. We have since 

 learned that both are used, and both highly 

 esteemed, and in many cases where the wild 

 garden cherry is not to be had, the cerasus sero- 

 tina is wholly employed. — Ed. G. M.] 



Black or Yellow Locust. — D. says : " We 

 consulted your book, but could not ascertain 

 from it if Robinia pseudo acacia (Yellow Locust) 

 is the same as White and Black Locust, and if 

 it is only the soil that makes the difference. We 

 find in Bryant's Forest-Tree Culturist, that he 

 claims they are different, but gives them all 

 under the head as above. An early answer will 

 oblige." 



[Does any one know of any difierence in the 

 wood or location, tluit gave rise to the distinctive 

 names of Yellow and Black? — Ed. G. M.] 



