76 TREE WOUNDS AND DISEASES 



common in newly thinned oak, chestnut, and 

 elm woods. 



Premature seed-bearing may usually be put 

 down to an unhealthy condition of the tree, 

 which excites an abnormal tendency towards 

 the reproduction of the particular species. 

 Speaking generally, seed-bearing in any con- 



Heart-shake. 



siderable quantity before the tree has attained 

 to its normal height is a sure sign that the tree 

 will not attain to a valuable size. With the 

 larch, early seed-bearing is always a sign of 

 decay and heart-rot, and the same applies to the 

 Scotch and other species of pine. 



Heart-shake is prevalent in almost every 

 kind of timber, and may best be described as 

 clefts or splits that follow the medullary rays 

 from the centre outwards. Star-shake radiates 



