UTILIZATION OF CALIFORNIA EUCALYPTS. 23 
methods of handling California-grown eucalypts, particularly the 
blue gum. These experiments have not yet proceeded far enough 
to furnish data to answer the various questions to be determined. 
So far they have been confined to poles and logs, but they will be 
extended to include lumber, and possibly veneer. Only young, 
immature timber is included, since it is claimed that this class of 
material will be most widely utilized in California for lumber. The 
main points to be determined in the seasoning of logs and poles are: 
(1) The effect of season of felling trees upon subsequent loss of 
moisture, checking, and shrinking. 
Fic, 5.—Blue-gum log protected with S irons to minimize checking during seasoning. 
(2) The effect of the depth and the season of girdling upon loss of 
moisture, checking, and shrinking. 
(3) The effect of peeling poles cut at different seasons upon the 
loss of moisture and the amount of checking and shrinking, as against 
leaving the poles unpeeled. 
(4) The effect of various means of preventing checking, such as 
the use of S irons and painting the butts. 
(5) The effect of soaking green peeled logs in fresh and in salt 
water for varying periods. 
(6) The effect of climatic conditions on the coast and in the interior 
valleys upon rate of moisture loss, checking, and shrinking. 
[Cir. 179] 
