ECONOMIC WOODS OF THE UNITED STATES 69 



TASTE 



Wood substance itself, being insoluble in water or weak 

 alkaline solutions, is necessarily tasteless. The characteristic 

 taste of certain woods is due then to soluble substances deposited 

 in the cell lumina or infiltrated into the cell walls. In any wood 

 the most pronounced flavor is obtained from the sapwood; it 

 is also more pronounced in green material than in dry. This is 

 probably due to the fact that the substances giving wood its 

 flavor were in solution or soluble form in the living sapwood. 

 When submerged in water they may be leached out, and when 

 exposed to air, oxidized. 



Taste is occasionally helpful in identifying woods, though, 

 like odor, it cannot be described with accuracy. The wood of 

 Libocedrus decurrens has a very spicy flavor; that of Pinus palus* 

 iris terebinthic; that of Chamcecyparis lawsoniana spicy-resinous; 

 that of Sassafras rather spicy. The wood of Castanea has no 

 special flavor, but on account of the tannin in it, has an astringent 

 effect on the mouth. 



ADDITIONAL REFERENCES 



Vessels (pp. 14-16) 



JEFFREY, EDWARD C., AND COLE, RUTH D.: Experimental In- 

 vestigations on the Genus Drimys. Annals of Botany, 30 359- 

 368, 1916. 



KNIGHT, MARGARET: Drimys Winteri and Drimys odorata (note). 

 Annals of Botany, 29: 310-311, 1915. 



THOMPSON, W. P., AND BAILEY, I. W.: Are Tetracentron, Trocho- 

 dendron, and Drimys Specialized or Primitive Types ? Memoirs 

 of the N. Y. Bot, Garden, 6: 27-32. Aug. 31, 1916. 



Tracheids (pp. 16-18) 



GERRY, ELOISE: A comparison of Tracheid Dimensions in Long- 

 leaf Pine and Douglas Fir, with Data on the Strength and 

 Length, Mean Diameter and Thickness of Wall of the Tracheids. 

 Science, 43: 1106 : 360, 1916. 



