FOREST TREES OF THE ATLANTIC COAST OF G ALICIA. 593 



tallest Eucalypti that I have seen in Europe. The Atlantic coasts 

 of the Iberian peninsula are evidently well suited to the growth of 

 Eucalypti as timber trees. In the delta of the Tagus there are fine 

 groves, many trees ranging over 100 feet in height, and some exceeding 

 120 feet. Yet I was surprised to find that a still greater growth had 

 been made in a shorter time in the extreme north-west of the 

 peninsula, where the temperature is many degrees lower, and the 

 rainfall so much greater than in their native habitat. At Sotomayor 

 some trees recently felled exceeded 50 metres (163 feet) in length 

 as they lay. The wood is in great demand for flooring and constructive 

 purposes generally, and although the boles are slender, yet the remark- 

 able straightness of the trunks gives little waste under the saw. The 

 wood, as grown in the peninsula, is reputed to maintain its first-class 

 durable character notwithstanding its rapid growth. 



Some fifteen or twenty years ago the Eucalypti at Sotomayor 

 reached the fruiting stage, but it does not appear that the value of the 

 tree for timber purposes was immediately recognized. It is at least 

 evident that the general planting of Eucalypti did not take place until 

 within the last decade, but since that time it has become general. It 

 is noticeable that the foliage character of this genus changes greatly 

 with age ; in the case of E. Globulus the glaucous character of the 

 young foliage is superseded by a sombre tone of grey, and the size, 

 shape, and distribution of the leaves are profoundly modified. I was 

 surprised to find, intermingled with the type of E. Globulus, many 

 individuals possessing the foliage-characters of E. obliqua, and also the 

 bark-peeling peculiarity of this latter species. 



As to the rate of growth of these Eucalypti : to keep up a rate of 

 growth of 4 feet a year for forty years and thus to reach a height 

 of 150 to 170 feet, struck me as very remarkable in 42J N. latitude. 

 However, on examining the growth-rate of the seedling trees I was 

 satisfied of the approximate correctness of the dates given me. Many 

 seedlings barely two years old had already attained a height of 7 feet, 

 and a few individuals had done their 4 feet a year in the first two years 

 of their existence, and this in two cold and inclement years. 



I noticed a fungoid disease in the bark of a few trees already large 

 enough for felling ; but it is quite likely that this is a saprophytic 

 fungus, which only attacks the bark when it is already dead and 

 ready to peel off. However, this fungus should be carefully studied, 

 for there is a great prospective value in the Eucalyptus forests, and 

 a large area of practically valueless land is open to afforestation in 

 Galicia. Hence the health of these trees is of national importance. 



Libocedrus sp. (c). — Presumably L. chilensis. Rare in gardens. 



Pinus Laricio (c), P. maritima (syn. P. Pinaster) (a). — Perhaps the 

 rainfall is greater than P. Laricio cares for. The specimens I saw 

 looked healthy enough, but their growth was apparently slower than 

 in parts of England. P. maritima suffers somewhat from the attacks 

 of the pine weevil, but the trees are generally healthy and of stronger 

 growth than on the Portuguese coast. 



vol. xxxix. 2 s 



