22 BULLETIN 1037, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
arrives will have dried to a degree which will render them less sus- 
ceptible to fungi (Roth, 35, p. 57). 
In the bottom lands of the South, however, autumn and winter 
cutting may not always be feasible owing to the wet and muddy 
conditions then prevailing, which make hauling difficult, if not im- 
possible. 
Incidentally, leaf seasoning (Tiemann, 51), i. e., girdling trees 
while in full leaf and then allowing them to remain, often for years 
or until the leaves have entirely shriveled up, with the idea that much 
of the free water in the sapwood will be drawn off by transpiration 
through the leaf surfaces and thus prevent sap-stain, does not seem to 
be practiced in the regions visited by the writer. Although this 
method is said to be common in the seasoning of teak in India and 
has been advocated by some as applicable to gum in this country, yet 
it does not seem to meet with general approval, because it exposes 
the timber to the ravages of insects and to fungi causing decay. 
RAPID HAULING. 
One of the precautionary measures to be observed, especially dur- 
ing the late spring and summer, is that of hauling timber immedi- 
ately after felling. Raw stock can not be gotten out of the woods 
and to the saw too rapidly. It is possible for fungous infections to 
take place at all times of the year on the exposed surfaces of freshly 
cut timber. These develop more rapidly, however, during warm, 
humid weather, and especially under the conditions which obtain in 
the woods. 
STORAGE IN THE WOODS. 
If it is found necessary to allow logs and bolts to remain in the 
woods, they should be so separated that the ends are left several 
inches apart. If the sawed ends remain in contact, fungi are liable 
to develop between them. Some have recommended that logs that 
are to remain in the woods during the summer be painted on the 
exposed ends with creosote (Von Schrenk, 10). It has been con- 
sidered advantageous by some (Von Schrenk, 1$\ see also Hartig, 18) 
to remove the bark from logs that must of necessity be left in the 
woods for an. extended period. Advocates of such treatment state 
that the peeled surfaces soon become air-dried and consequently 
provide insufficient moisture for the germination of any fungous 
spores that may fall thereon. In order to keep such logs off the 
damp ground and thus assist in the air-drying process measures must 
be taken to provide some sort of temporary foundation free from 
stain, mold, or rot. 
When it becomes necessary to store split billets in the woods, they 
should be piled with only two billets in a course and should rest upon 
