DISEASES OF TAXODIUM AXD LIBOCEDRUS. 



has beenfound that the trees near their northern limit are less 

 frequently diseased than the more southern ones. As it is al- 

 most impossible to tell whether a tree be pecky or not before 

 it is cut down, all actual counts had to be made where lumber 

 mills were cutting the trees, and as they usually cut all 

 trees, even those liable to be diseased, a fair estimate for that 

 particular locality could be made. In St. James Parish, 

 Louisiana, 397 trees out of 400 were found diseased to a 

 greater or less extent. From circulars sent to various lum- 

 ber concerns the following estimates are made, which may 

 be considered as much under- rather than overdrawn. 

 Apalachicola, Fla., 1015%. New Orleans Cypress Lum- 

 ber Co., 99%. Kamos,La., 15%. Georgetown, S.C., " con- 

 siderable. ' ' These figures refer to peckiness ' ' in logs used 

 for lumber, and do not have any reference to the tops of 

 trees, which are the first parts to be " pecky." The char- 

 acter of the ground seems to have little if any effect on the 

 prevalence or extent of the disease. The cypress trees 

 normally grow with their root system in water for at least a 

 part of each year, and in many places, particularly along the 

 coast, during the entire year. This rather unusual habit of 

 growth together with the appearance of the puzzling form- 

 ation of knees has led many to connect the facts of growing 

 in water, development of knees, and " peckiness." So far 

 no evidence is forthcoming to show any connection between 

 these factors. 



NAME. 



When a diseased cypress tree is cut down, the heart wood 

 appears as if a large number of holes had been bored with 

 a -J- inch bit which had been withdrawn, leaving the shav- 

 ings, finely divided, within the hole. It is this peculiar ap- 

 pearance which has given rise to the different popular terms 

 applied to the disease. Dickeson & Brown (1. c.) refer to 

 it as " pecky." In the Mississippi Valley and throughout 

 Louisiana I have found the diseased wood called * < pecky ' ' 



