304 BASSWOOD 



somewhat irregular in shape. They are not serious defects 

 and their cause is unknown. 



When the bark is peeled in early summer and thrown 

 into water, the mucilaginous parting between the live an- 

 nual layers soon decays, and the latter separate into long, 

 ribbon-like strips constituting the common " bast " of com- 

 merce. 



Basswood does not seed until about thirty years of age 

 but after that will produce seed very frequently, sometimes 

 every year for a long period. In the Middle States the 

 blossoms appear in early July and the seed ripens by the 

 first of October. The seed is encased in a hard, spherical 

 shell, about one fourth of an inch in diameter. When this 

 shell is removed, the seed proper will still be found encased 

 in another hard coating. These shells prevent moisture 

 from reaching the seed, and the result is that germination 

 cannot take place until the outer shell decays. To facilitate 

 such decay, the seeds should be planted as soon as ripe, 

 and if not, they should be stratified in wet sand and placed 

 where they can be alternately frozen and thawed during 

 winter. They have been known to lie in the ground two 

 years without any very perceptible change. There is as yet 

 no known method of hastening the decay of the outer shell 

 without destroying the vitality of the seed. Probably strat- 

 ifying in sand and removing such as show evidence of 

 growth in the spring is about all that can be done. The 

 seeds can be sown in the seed-bed the same as Ash or 

 Maple. The seedlings develop a stout root somewhat akin 

 to a tap-root, but they can be deprived of it without much 

 injury ; yet it would be best to remove them into the trans- 

 plant nursery in order to have a well-established root sys- 

 tem when set in the forest. As the tree starts growth early 

 in the spring, and will not stand removal after the leaves 

 start, early planting is absolutely necessary. The tree 

 sprouts from the stump quite freely, but sprouts seldom 

 attain a size large enough for sawlogs without being de- 

 cayed at the butt. 



