183 



general. Sir Thomas Mitchell gave " Ngeu " as the aboriginal name, in use 

 at "Regent Lake," Lachlan River, for a Casuarina (probably the Belah). 

 " Gooree " -was an aboriginal name at Terry-hie-hie, New England, New 

 South Wales; " Alkoo," of Mount Lyndhurst, South Australian blacks (M. 

 Koch). 



Leaves (Brancldets). 



Chiefly used for feeding stock in dry times, and is considered one of the best 

 o.-iks for this purpose. (District Forester C. Marriott, Dubbo.) 



The Belah is sometimes eaten by stock, is very woody and astringent, which 

 is claimed for all the Casuarinas in this (Coolabah) district. If fed to stock 

 for any length of time the results are disastrous. (R. W. Peacock.) 



Stock will eat Belah in times of drought if hard pushed, but the settler does 

 not fell Belah for fodder when he has Mulga, Leopard wood, Rosewood, Kurra- 

 jong. Supple Jack. &c., of a more nutritious character. (H. V. Jackson). 



Valuable for fodder in S.A. (M. Koch.) 



Timber. The character of this timber is its absence of figure, most 

 remarkable for a She Oak. The outer portion (not the sap-wood, which is 

 very narrow) is pale-coloured, while the inner portion is of a rich, reddish- 

 brown, or even chocolate colour. 



Hard to cut or saw, but splits freely with the grain. (District Forester C. 

 Marriott. ) 



A first-class fuel wood. 



It is very easily killed by ringharking. never suckers, and burns very readily. 

 Timber is rather straight and tough, but most liable to split with the weather*. 

 (R. \V. 1'eacock.) 



Timber very hard, and if split it makes good rails, but it decays rapidly in 

 contact with the ground. (R. Kidston, Condobolin.) 



Split Belah makes good posts, and stands fairly well in the ground, but 

 cannot be compared to Mulga and Gidgee. Round sappy posts soon rot in the 

 ground. (II. V. Jackson.) 



The timber is excessively hard, but brittle ; it is much used for fencing posts. 

 (K. II. Bennett, Ivanhoe, rin //'//.) 



The tree is a quick-growing, fast-decaying one, and it begins to die frequently 

 before it has ceased growing. It is a rare thing to cut down a tree thoroughly 

 sound throughout. The decay begins at the tap-root in the form of a white 

 mould; this works up into the heart, which becomes dry and hollow, and in 

 course of rime the whole tree becomes a pipe. The inside of this is excessively 

 hard, and under the axe flies to pieces like glass. It is useless as a building 

 timber, but the trees being straight they are much used for log fencing and 

 building rough stockyards. (Richard Bennett.) 



Good for firewood; sometimes used for bullock-yokes, but liable to split. No- 

 use for post or outside work. (R. J. Dalton, Wanaaring.) 



See a valuable note on Belah, by Mr. Gordon Burrow, in Part 60 of my 

 " Forest Flora of New South Wales." 



Habitat. The Belah is the commonest Casuarina of the interior, and it 

 and Pine (Callitris) are almost the only timber trees found; there in 

 depressions of the land or actually moist localities. These big trees require 

 more moisture than shrubby species, because the roots must go down deep 

 to water. In this connection the following reply (based on Schimper) to a 

 correspondent, who wrote to me asking why the great plains of New South. 

 Wales are apparently devoid of timber, may be of some interest: 



The great grass-land plains of Australia are, when xerophilous. technically 

 at ell IK ., and xerophilous grass-land containing isolated trees i.s savannah. I 

 take it that you are referring both to steppe and savannah country, for there 

 is no hard-and-fast line between them. 



