12 



An Optimum for Australian Timbers. 



I wrote the following note in " Australia To-day," of 1st November, 1911,. 

 p. 93: "The stringybark (Eucalyptus obliqua) of Tasmania is used for 

 wood-paving, and while Western Australians Avill not agree with the judg- 

 ment of a Tasmaniaii expert that ' it is preferable to jarrah,' the statement is 

 evidence of the local esteem in which it is held, and gives me an opportunity 

 of reiterating the fact, of which abundant proof has come before me, that 

 certain timbers are their best in particular States. . . . E. obliqua seems 

 to attain its best development in Tasmania." 



^ The Rev. J. W. Dwyer, of Temora, wrote to me: "Re Eucalyptus 

 Siuarhana. I often heard from farmers at Bowna, .near Albury, where it 

 grows well on flats, that for fencing-posts it is pretty lasting if put into the 

 same kind of ground in which it grows, but not elsewhere, which may 

 account for the rosy report given by one of your correspondents." 



Mr. William Hogarth, of Momba, Wilcannia, communicated to me nearly 

 thirty years ago the following observation on the durability of timbers : " In 

 any locality, wherever the particular kind of tree predominates, that timber 

 will last longest in the ground for instance, the Mulga where Mulga 

 predominates that is, in dry situations, while in damp situations, where 

 ' Box ' predominates, the Mulga soon rots, and the Box. lasts longer in the 

 ground. Where Oak (Casuarina) predominates, Mulga and Box will rot 

 sooner than Oak, and so on." Mr. Hogarth made these observations, 

 having had many old fences to pull down on his run, and in putting up 

 new ones he acts as much as possible keeping this in *eiew. These con- 

 clusions have been combated by some gentlemen from Western New South 

 Wales, to whom the author broached the subject. The matter is, however,, 

 worthy of ventilation. 



The following was written to me in 18.89 by Mr. W. Baeuerlen, then 

 Collector for the Technological Museum : " Mr. William Beach, of Dele- 

 gate Saw-mills, tells mie that any timber put in the ground as posts, &c., 

 will last much longer if put in upside down, i.e., always the lower end of 

 the post turned up. He says many years ago he put up a sapling fence, 

 and in the usual way dug holes for the ' dog-logs.' Wet weather came on, 

 when he thought, as the ground was soaked, he could get on quicker with 

 his work if he could drive the ' dog-logs ' into the ground without digging 

 holes. In order to do so he naturally turned the ' dog-logs ' upside down, 

 as the thinner end would drive easier. The result was that the ' dog-logs ' 

 turned upside down lasted six or seven years longer than the ones put in 

 in the usual way. Acting upon that experience when putting up a fence 

 again, he put the posts of stringybark (Euc. macrorrhyncha) all upside 

 down, with the result that after twenty-five years the pests are standing 

 yet; to all appearance quite sound, while posts put in in the regular way 

 at the same time have rotted away long ago." 



Any man who can contribute any observation which will enable the life 

 of one or more of our timbers to be extended is a benefactor to the country, 

 just as is the man who makes " two blades of grass " (two trees) grow where 

 formerly only one grew. 



I have suggested that every species of tree has an " optimum " district 

 that is to say, a district in which that tree grows better than anywhere 

 else; in other words, produces the most valuable product. We should 

 endeavour to learn the optimum district for each species, in order that w 

 may search for other districts offering similar conditions, and find standing 

 timber, or cultivate the species under those conditions. 



