Periodical Literature. 339 



A year ago on the 20th day of November 

 Damage an ice storm in the lower Vosges did heavy 



hy damage. In Alsace-Lorraine and in Baden 



Ice Storms. a total of 32,000 festmeters of timber-wood 



was thrown and broken. Ice storms, says 

 Ney, are rare phenomena fortunately, for the destruction wrought is 

 always severe. Not only are the trees brought to the ground but 

 limbs are torn away splitting the bole past all possibility of use ex- 

 cept as fuel. 



The atmospheric conditions under which ice storms occur are of 

 unusual interest. Pure clean water may be cooled below the freez- 

 ing point and remain in a liquid state. In this state the slightest 

 jar or the introduction of a minute particle to serve as a nucleus 

 for crystalization causes the liquid to congeal instantly. Before 

 ice storms can occur the air must be free from dust and smoke, as 

 protracted rains with no strong winds will cleanse it. Then a 

 fall of temperature will cool the rain drops below freezing, but 

 snow will not be formed for lack of a nucleus for crystallization. 

 On striking the earth of any solid body the shock is great enough 

 to freeze the drops. The result is a coating of translucent ice, 

 covering everything in the landscape with a sheath, thicker above 

 or in the direction from which the storm is driven. This sheath 

 is very heavy and on broad leaves may increase the weight enor- 

 mously. 



Pine, spruce and fir suffer most, being evergreen, yet the larch 

 and birch, too, are severely damaged by the ice that collects on the 

 long slender branchlets. 



Utilizing a forest damaged by an ice storm presents peculiar 

 problems. Conifers never recover lost crowns, but broad leaved 

 trees can very often put on new branches and continue their 

 growth for a while at least. Pick up all the fallen trees first, then 

 the splintered standing and then those conifers with crowns 

 stripped from their shafts. Painstaking utilization will reduce 

 the loss to a minimum. 



Der Eisbruch in den unteren Vogesen vom 20. November, 1905. 

 Zeitschrift fiir Forst- und Jagdwesen. March, I9O6. Pp. 150- 

 159. 



