592 



West Indian Birch 



The wood is light brown, weak and soft and decays rapidly; its specific gravity 

 is only 0.30. The branches are much used for fenceposts in the West Indies, 

 and, when fresh, grow readily in such usage into trees, striking root easily. The 

 smooth red-brown bark makes this tree conspicuous in tropical landscapes, and 

 it is considerably planted for shade, being of rapid growth. The generic name 

 Terebinthus, referring to the resinous sap, given to this tree by Patrick Browne, 

 in 1756, antedates Biirsera Jacquin by six years; Browne estabhshed the genus 

 by a good description, and by a reference to the Linna?an name of the tree, 

 given in 1753. It is sometimes called Turpentine tree in the West Indies. 



