146 Select Plants for Industrial Culture and 



Dacrydium cupressinum, Solander. 



New Zealand. Native name, Rimu ; the Red Pine of 

 colonists. This stately tree attains the height of 200 feet, and 

 furnishes a hard and straight -grained wood, very lasting for rails, 

 but readily decaying in waterworks. Professor Kirk recommends 

 the timber on account of its great strength for girders and heavy 

 beams anywhere under cover. With other conifers of New Zealand 

 particularly eligible for forest-valleys. A most suitable tree for 

 cemeteries, on account of its pendent branches. The bark possesses 

 fair tan-properties. 



Dacrydium Franklini, J. Hooker. 



Huon-pine of Tasmania, where it is endemic ; only found in moist 

 forest-recesses, and thus might be planted in ferntree-gullies of 

 South-Eastern Australia also. Height of tree sometimes 100 feet ; 

 stem-circumference reaching 20 feet. The wood is light, extremely 

 close-grained, highly esteemed for various artisans' work. It is the 

 best of Australasian woods for carving, also extensively used -for 

 the rougher kinds of xylography, in the manufacture of pianos and 

 best cabinet-work, also for building select boats. The tree is not 

 of celerity of growth, nor resists severe frosts. 



Dacrydium Kirkii, F. v. Mueller. 



New Zealand. The " Manoao." A pyramidal tree, attaining 80 

 feet in height ; stem-diameter to 4 feet. Timber of a reddish colour 

 and extreme durability [Professor Kirk]. Bears seeds abundantly. 



Dactylis glomerata, Linne.* 



Europe, North-Africa, Northern and Middle Asia, The Cocks- 

 foot-grass. One of the best of perennial, tall, vigorous pasture- 

 grasses, adapted as well for dry as moist soil, thus even available 

 for wet clays ; particularly eligible for hay. Will live under the 

 shade of trees in forests ; fit also for coast-sands. Resists drought 

 better than most of the ordinary culture-grasses. Mr. A. R. Craw- 

 ford kept an individual plant for 16 years, and it still continued to 

 increase. Ascends the Pyrenees to 9,000 feet [Boissier], and is 

 indigenous in Norway to lat. 68 50' [Schuebeler], Its yield of 

 foliage is rich and continuous, but its stems are hard ; the same 

 plants live through a long series of years, and can be cut twice or 

 thrice each season without application of manure. It is generally 

 liked by cattle, unless when by understocking or neglect it has been 

 allowed to become rank. Langethal observes : " What the Timothy- 

 grass is for the more dry sandy ground, that is the Cocksfoot-grass 

 for more binding soil, and no other (European) grass can be com- 

 pared to it for copiousness of yield, particularly if the soil contains 

 a fair quantity of lime. It grows quickly, again after the first 

 cutting, and comes early on in the season. It is much grown in 



