THE SOUTHERN CYPRESS, 39 
In Chipola Lakes (locally known as ‘‘Dead Lakes’’), tributary to 
the Apalachicola River in Florida, a subsidence of from 3 to 6 feet 
has been followed by the gradual dying of a heavy, pure cypress 
stand over a nonalluvial area about 10 miles long by about half a 
mile in width. Many trees, however, still persist with a fragment of 
life after standing in clear water about 70 years. Repeated top fires, 
started by fishermen and others, during dry seasons, in the dense 
festoons of Spanish moss have left clear evidence of their part in the 
killing of the stand. On adjacent lands along the Apalachicola River, 
where alluvial deposits kept pace with the subsidence, the bases of 
mature cypress trees he deeply buried, yet very old trees are still 
living. A splendid young stand of cypress and ash about 48 years 
old covers the deep, rich alluvial soul, indicating the close of the period 
of rapid subsidence. The effect of draining swamp lands is discussed 
on page 53, where it is shown that the effect of ordinary draining is 
sheht. 
GROWTH. 
In considering the growth in diameter, height, and volume, it is 
essential to distinguish clearly between trees grown in the virgin 
forest and those grown in the open, or second growth. Because the 
— rate of development is so widely different in the two cases, it is essen- 
tial to have two sets of tables for comparison. Measurements indi- 
cate little difference in the rate of growth of cypress between the 
warmer and the cooler regions of its natural distribution. Trees 
planted in Pennsylvania and Ohio, north of its natural range, are 
srowing about as rapidly as the natural growth in various parts of 
the South. : 
Wounds in the bark are healed at the rapid rate of three-fourths 
to 1 inch per year on each side of the wound. One tree 330 years old 
overgrew a fire scar 6.8 inches across in 4 years. Most remarkable is 
the continuance of life in the stump sometimes for several vears with- 
out the formation of vegetative sprouts. In this manner the tops of 
stumps from 18 to 24 inches across occasionally are found fully 
calloused over and living several years after cutting. 
GROWTH IN HEIGHT. 
Cypress seedlings grow at a very rapid rate. This aids the young 
tree in reaching above the ordinary levels of surface water. Few if 
any conifers besides cypress commonly reach heights of from 8 to 14 
inches the first season and from 16 to 24 inches the second season. 
(See Table 6.) 
1 See “ Cypress under Cultivation,”’ p. 64. 
