84 TREE WOUNDS AND DISEASES 



oak becomes split longitudinally ; that of the 

 beech, owing to smoothness of surface, stretches 

 horizontally ; while in the case of the plane, 

 sycamore, acacia, and other trees the outer 

 bark peels off. Scoring the trunk and main 

 branches is to be recommended, and, by leaving 

 the inner layer of bark uninjured, considerable 

 latitude may be taken with the rough external 

 coating. 



Scorching from the heat of a fire causes the 

 bark of a tree to peel off, and the injured 

 wood becomes tenanted by fungus and boring 

 insects. 



It is a well-known fact that an increase or 

 diminution of water supply will have an im- 

 mediate effect on the health of trees that are 

 growing within the specified area. 



Not long ago, the writer was asked to 

 report on a large number of trees that had 

 suddenly become unhealthy, some having died 

 out altogether. The cause was not difficult to 

 trace, for adjoining the plantation, which was 

 principally composed of beech trees of sixty 

 years' growth, growing on a gravelly bottom, 

 a lake had been formed, which completely 



