August, MOS.] 



133 



TIMBERS. 



EUCALYPTUS TREES. 



Eucalyptus trees are becoming widely 

 known in India, but the virtues of their 

 timber are not generally recognised. 

 The following extract from Circular No. 

 59 of the United States Forest Service 

 describes the economic uses of the blue 

 gum, the best known spices of eucalypt. 

 The circular gives directions as to pro- 

 pagation, planting and care of the young 

 tree, and refutes the common idea that 

 the propagation of the seed is difficult. 

 Reference is made to the fact that 

 eucalypts are peculiarly sensitive to 

 frost, few being able to survive a tem- 

 perature below 20° F. 



The wood of the blue gum is very 

 heavy, hard, strong and tough, but it is 

 not durable in contact with the soil. It 

 is close-grained, and is split with diffi- 

 culty after it has dried. It is less elastic 

 than hickory, but it has been demon- 

 strated by mechanical tests that seasoned 

 blue gum timber is very little inferior in 

 strength and stiffness to the best second 

 growth hickory. In appearance it closely 

 resembles the wood of hickory and ash. 

 Blue gum timber is utilized for a great 

 variety of purposes in California. The 

 wood is excellent for fuel, and in the 

 treeless valleys has been the chief fuel 

 supply for many years. In Southern 

 California the steady demand renders 

 commercial planting for fuel very pro- 

 fitable. Eucalyptus timber has been 

 extensively used in California for wharf 

 piling. Blue gum piles are in use in 

 nearly every port on the California coast, 

 and extended trial has shown that they 

 resist the attacks of marine borers which 

 destroy timber in sea water longer than 

 other species commonly used for piling. 

 Blue gum timber has also been used to 

 some extent for fence posts and tele- 

 phone poles. The wood is not suitable 

 for this purpose, however, on account of 

 its short life in the ground. Seasoned 

 posts last a little longer than green posts, 

 and timber cut from the heart is more 

 durable than sapwood. Blue gum timber 

 has been used to a limited extent to 

 determine its value for rail road ties. 

 The results thus far obtained indicate 

 that it compares favourably with second- 

 grade pine tie timber. In case blue gum 

 ties gain a place in the market it may be 

 profitable to plant the tree for that pur- 

 pose. However, if commercial planta- 

 tions are to be established for ties, sugar 

 gum should be used in preference to 

 blue gum, on account of its greater 

 strength and its greater durability in 

 contact with the soil. 



Strength and Toughness. 

 In recent years blue gum has been 

 manufactured into lumber, and has come 

 into favour for many uses. Its strength 

 and toughness have led to its use as a 

 material for vehicle construction with 

 very satisfactory results. A just appreci- 

 ation of the qualities of gum timber will 

 encourage extensive commercial planting, 

 and so furnish an important source of 

 hardwood timber supply for the Pacific 

 coast. The lumber has been extensively 

 used for vehicle stock and for the 

 wooden parts of agricultural imple- 

 ments. It is also made into insu- 

 lator pins for electric wiring, and it is 

 used for furniture and cabinet work, 

 hardwood flooring, trip-hammer beams, 

 the levers of windlasses, and the block- 

 ing for oil and wine presses, wood paving, 

 pulley blocks, and belt wheels. 



The extensive utilization of gum lum- 

 ber has hitherto been prevented chiefly 

 by the scanty supply of timber of 

 merchantable size and by the difficulty 

 experienced in seasoning the lumber 

 without warping and checking. It is 

 believed, however, that in the seasoning 

 of gum no greater difficulties will be 

 encountered than in the seasoning of 

 any other hard wood of similar density 

 and strength. 



The esteem in which eucalyptus timber 

 is held in California is based upon the 

 exclusive use of blue gum. In Aus- 

 tralia, however, this species is considered 

 inferior in strength and timber value to 

 several other eucalypts. Strength of the 

 timber of blue gum and other eucalypts 

 grown in California have sustained this 

 opinion. It is therefore probable that 

 eucalypts are destined to enjoy yet 

 great favour when these other species 

 become more widely used. 



A product of considerable importance 

 derived from blue gum is the oil distilled 

 from the leaves. Eucalyptus oil is recog- 

 nised as a valuable drug and is extensive- 

 ly used by pharmacists and physicians. 



Eucalyptus Windbreaks. 

 In many valleys of California eucalyp- 

 tus windbreaks are considered abso- 

 lutely necessary to insure the succssfnl 

 production of crops. They have been 

 most extensively used to safeguard 

 citrus orchards from strong and destruc- 

 tive winds in Southern California, but 

 they are now being established also for 

 the protection of vineyards and orchards 

 of deciduous fruits, olives and walnuts. 

 The blue gum excels other species for 

 windbreak purposes on account of its 



