40 



FORESTRY IN NEW ENGLAND 



A cross section of white pine, which attained a diameter of 

 thirty-two inches in seventy-seven years, is on exhibition in the 

 State Forester's office in Burhngton, Vermont. Unlike some 

 rapid growers, the white pine Hves to an advanced age, occasion- 

 ally three hundred years or more, though trees of that age are 



Fig. 14. — A white pine of the best type for lumber; with straight trunk, 

 without dead branches. 



now rare. In youth it is very susceptible to dam_age by fire, 

 but as it gradually substitutes a thick, rigid bark for the thin, 

 green, smooth bark of youth, it becomes more resistant. Its 

 chief natural enemy is the white pine weevil, which is described 

 later (see Chapter VII). 



On account of its smooth grain and the softness of its wood 

 the white pine is a most valuable wood for many purposes. 



