77 
Isles leads one to suppose that it will prove successful as a forest 
tree if planted under suitable conditions. Being naturally a moisture- 
loving subject, it could hardly be expected to thrive under conditions 
which would suit the Scots pine for instance, but there are many 
low-lying places where the water is near the surface which would 
probably provide it with an ideal home. That it is able to grow 
in water is shown by a tree which has been surrounded by water 
for several years in the lily pond in the Arboretum at Kew, whilst 
on Mr. Newdigate’s estate near Nuneaton a tree with no soil visible 
about the base is to be seen growing in the middle of a large lake. 
Trees perpetually surrounded by water cannot be expected to make 
such satisfactory progress, however, as those which stand clear of 
the water, but close enough for the roots to enter. To such trees 
an occasional flooding is said to cause no inconvenience. 
Sargent, “Silva of North America,” x. pp. 151-154, gives a 
description of the species and its peculiarities. The wood is 
soft, close, straight-grained, not strong, easily worked, and ver 
durable in contact with the soil. Hough, “ Elements of Forestry,” 
p- 311, mentions three grades of lumber from this tree known in the 
timber trade—red, black, and white cypress, differing in the colour 
of the heartwood. The red and black are most valued, as they are 
less liable to split than the white. The tree has been described as 
“one of the great resources of the Southern States,” its wood being 
highly valued for’ general constructive purposes—railway ties, 
A number of the finest trees about London are to be found at 
Whitton Park, Hounslow, and Syon House, Brentford. In the 
former case there are several specimens between 80 and 100 feet in 
height, the largest one having a girth of 13 feet 7 inches at five 
feet from the ground. The largest one at Syon is recorded in the 
“ Catalogue of Syon House Trees and Shrubs,” 1910, as_being 
111 feet high and 12 feet in girth. In 1849 it is said that 
23 specimens existed there, all of them being more than 50 feet in 
height. 
here can be little doubt that the deciduous cypress is suitable 
for a pure stand, while it would probably succeed with Sitka spruce 
in wet but not exposed places. Its narrow fastigiate habit when 
young, suggests that close planting would be necessary. . 
J. R. Batterden, “ Timber,” 1908, says that the timber of 
_ Taxodium distichum finds a place in’ the English market, and, in 
describing its uses, remarks that it is largely used for tanks, vats, 
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