TAPPING BLACK PINE. 721 



weakens the tree more than the Styrian method and cannot 

 be applied for more than 15 to 20 years. 



Tapping the larch for resin yields very little profit to the 

 owner of the trees viz., about %d. per tree annually. This 

 is as nothing when compared with the damage caused to the 

 wood ; only trees 150 to 200 years old can be tapped. 



4. Black Vim: 



The black pine (Pinns La-rido, dustnaca] is tapped in the 

 Wienerwald by removing the bark from the base of the tree 



Fig. 386. Tyrolese method of tapping larch, 



over about one-third (Gayer says two-thirds) of its circumfer- 

 ence to a height of 40 centimeters (15 inches). A V-shaped 

 niche, which serves as a reservoir for the resin, is then cut 

 into the base of the tree, below this blaze. The blaze is 

 trimmed several times in a season by cutting into the sapwood, 

 and in succeeding years it is heightened annually by 40 centi- 

 meters, small pieces of wood being inserted in cuts made in 

 the blaze, so that the resin may not form too thick a crust, 

 but may fall into the niche. The crude resin is removed from 

 the niche once a fortnight, and the crust and dry resin in 

 autumn. Thus, at the end of 10 years, the blaze will be 4 

 meters (13 feet) high. 



These broad blazes are never occluded by new wood; the 

 F.U. 3 A 



