PINACEiE 413 



but inferior to that of P. excelsa. It is very resinous with con- 

 spicuous resin ducts, the well-marked heartwood being light 

 reddish brown and the sapwood yellow. In some districts it 

 is badly twisted and practically valueless, for it cannot even be 

 split for firewood. The best wood is used for building purposes, 

 general carpentry, box boards, etc., whilst, treated with a pre- 

 servative, it can be utilized as sleepers. A good deal of wood 

 is made into charcoal, 1,200 lb. of wood yielding 480 lb. of charcoal 

 and 96 lb. of tar. The thick, soft bark is of value for tanning. 

 Apart from its value as a timber tree, P. longifolia is of consider- 

 able commercial importance, for it is the principal resin-bearing 

 pine of the East. The quality of the resin is not quite so high 

 as that of P. excelsa, P. khasya, or P. Merkusii, but the yield is 

 greater, and as the trees are more accessible it is the only species 

 that is systematically tapped, A sample of the charred leaves 

 of this pine is preserved in the museums at Kew, with the 

 information that they are used in that state as a dye. 



P. longifolia grows under a variety of conditions and in very 

 different classes of soil. The finest trees are found where the soil 

 is moderately deep, well-drained, and light, but it also succeeds 

 on shallow soils and on bare rocks wherever it is possible for 

 seedlings to obtain roothold. In poor soil and in exposed places 

 growth is often slow and the trees stunted, whilst twisted timber 

 is stated to be prevalent where trees are growing in crevices of 

 rocks. Provided full light is available, it is not a difficult species 

 to regenerate. Good seed-years may be separated by several 

 years of indifferent seeding, but, when a good year occurs, the 

 seeds are widely distributed and germinate well on land that has 

 been allowed to go out of cultivation, or in other suitable places. 

 On ground covered by dead pine leaves germination is poor. 

 P. longifolia does well in S. Africa as far as the rapid production 

 of timber is concerned, but there does not appear to be any pros- 

 pect of a resin industry resulting from its introduction there. 

 A peculiarity of the tree in S. Africa is its ineffective seeding. 

 Mr. Stainer, of the S. African Forest Service, says that " cones are 

 not produced freely and very little seed is fertile." Similar aged 

 trees of P. Pinaster, on the other hand, cone freely, and self-sown 

 seeds germinate well. As P. longifolia is a sub-tropical species, 

 it is quite unsuitable for planting in the British Isles, except as an 

 ornamental tree in the mildest localities. 

 Troup, Silviculture of Indian Trees, iii, 1036 (1921). 



Pinus luchuensis, Mayr. 



LucHU Pine. 



A pine found by Mayr in the Luchu Islands, S. of Japan, 

 where it often attains a height of 100 ft. with a slender trunk 



