Timber Trees That Clothe The Earth

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 225, 21 September 1940, Page 7 (Supplement)

Timber Trees That Clothe The Earth

Who among the great crowds that dwell upon the earth stop to consider trees and the benefits they bring mankind? The trees in our parks and gardens, are lovely sights, but ornamentation is one of the minor uses of trees. They , have through the ages provided man and beast with protection against wind and rain and heat. They have yielded fuel and fruit and clothing, too. They have provided timber for houses and furniture and a multitude of other th:ngs, too numerous to mention here. There are other services just as vital to ' the well-being- of this planet. Trees are living breathing things like human \ beings. They need air and light and water. They breathe through their leaves, a'osorbing carbon from the.carbon-dioxide of the air' and using it for building up plant tissue. The oxygen is exhaled for the 'benefit of men and animals. Forests help to protect the land and conserve its moisture from the intense heat of the sun that would otherwise dry up the earth and make even the richest soil like the Sahara Desert. Forests induce rainfall. It has been proved that where forests have

There Will Always Be Forests

been ruthlessly., cut out the annual rainfall has decreased greatly. Forests protect hillsides. from excessive weathering. Here in Jfew Zealand we have many examples <jf what happens wlien hillsides are denuded of forest. Bleak barren ridges and rook-strewn valleys tell their own sad stories. There is no longer the wilful squandering of forest wealth. Millions and millions of trees are planted every year. There will always be forests—there must always be forests, to prevent huge tracts of the good earth turning into desolate wastes. The oak is not confined to Britain, but for centuries it has been the symbol of our nationhood—slow growing and deep rooted in the soil as are our institutions in the past, stouthearted, tough afrd enduring as our Courage. Mighty ironclads help to guard the Homeland now, ■ '' ~ lias been the mother of many famous ships, ships wuoae nuines ring through history

like clarion calls. May their spirits guard lier now . in this hour of great trial. . After the oak the ash produces the most useful wood of British, tim'ber trees. Its toughness> elasticity and lightness make it suit- • able for .wheelwrights and cultural implement makers, and for the manufacture of boat oars; ' axe and spade handles, alpen- ' stocks and so on. Teak, • sandalwood, rosewood ; and ebony, mahogany and wal- / nut are woods of beauty and ( romance. They give joy to cab- .'1 inetmakers and beauty lovers ' everywhere. Pieces of their tim- 1 ber are often specially selected ; and matched for their eccentric 1 markings, which are due to 6ome ] deformity in growth and add 1 greatly to their value. ' Mahogany is most suitable for milling, as it is perfectly straight i to a height of ninety to a hun- 1 dred feet and produces very large i logs. I

Teak is one of the most valuable timibers. It grows mainly in Southern India and. Burma and its southern limit is Java. In the days of the wooden sailer it was used extensively in shipbuilding and is still used for wooden boats and masts. Australia's "tall timibers" belong to the {eucalyptus, family. Jarrah has been called Australian mahogany and is a tough and durable timber provided it k kept dry. < Australia grows the world's tallest trees, many of them stretching above the gigantic Califdrnian redwoods. New Zealand is proud of her forest giants, especially the kauris. Unfortunately they are slow-growing and it would take centuries to replace kauri forests that were too lavishly felled in the early days of colonisation. Contrasted with the kauri Australian trees mature rapidly. Mountain ash, for example, is ready for milling in about 100 years and if it stands for 200 years, is no longer of commercial value. Visitors to New Zealand marvel at the beauty of ,some of our rarer .timbers. Puriri, which i« sometimes called New Zealand mahogany, is greatly admired.