NEW ZEALAND WHITE PINE 



after the manner of Deal. " Infinitely stronger, toughei and more 

 durable, though smaller, than the White Pine (Kahikatea), . . . 

 timber 50 ft. long by 2.\ ft. diam. may be met with, . . . marine- 

 piles, . . . almost imperishable, . . . sleepers, ... of great 

 strength and durability" (91). 



Authorities. Perceval (91), p. 53. The Agent-General for 

 New Zealand (A.G.). 



Colour. Light brownish-yellow: heart-wood well defined 

 from the whitish-brown to pure white, sap-wood, which is i to 2 

 inches wide. 



Anatomical Characters. As those of Podocarpus dacrydioides 

 No. 219, with the following variations : Rays, on the limit of 

 vision. Rings .clearly defined by a narrow, dense, darker boun- 

 dary-line sharply defined from the summer wood of the same 

 ring. The cells of this line are extremely fine. The rings are 

 visible on a cleft surface in Radial section but scarcely traceable 

 upon planed wood. 



Type specimens authenticated by the Forest Officer to the 

 Government of New Zealand. 



No. 219. NEW ZEALAND WHITE PINE. Podo- 

 carpus dacrydioides. A. Rich. 

 PLATE XVI. FIG. 140. 



Natural Order. Coniferae. 



Synonyms. D. excelsum. D. Don. 



Alternative Names. Kahikatea. Not Kahikatoa (91), p. 12. 



Source of Supply. New Zealand. 



Physical Characters, etc. Recorded dry- weight 26J-35 Ibs. 

 per cu. ft. Hardness Grade 8, very soft, compare White Pine 

 of America (P. Strobus). Smell and taste none. Burns well 

 and quietly with a slight, faint, sickly smell : embers glow in still 

 air and leave a grey ash. Solution colourless. 



Grain. Very fine, even and smooth. Surface bright, lustrous 

 when cleft : rays dull : ground- tissue crystalline : warm to the 

 touch. 



Bark. ? 



Uses, etc. Works very much like White Pine (P. Strobus). 

 "Cheap furniture, packing-cases and for works under cover, 

 ... the sap-wood ought not to be used in contact with damp 

 ground. As a rule the logs are remarkably sound, ... 150 ft. 

 by 5 ft. diam. . . . 350 cu. feet in one tree by no means un- 

 common " (91). " Not considered durable " (61). " Canoes, . . ^ 

 does not wear well, . . . liable to the attacks of a small worm " 

 (60). "Is greatly superior to the American Spruce and would 

 successfully compete with the best Baltic White Deal in the 



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