GROWTH OF TREES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 May 1938, Page 7

GROWTH OF TREES

NATIVE SPECIES PLANTED IN PARK MANY VARIETIES DOING WELL. RECORDS BY MR H. E. GARDNER. A record of the growth of native trees planted in Masterton Park has been kept by Mr H. E. Gardner. Contrary to a general belief that native trees are slow growers, many species are capable of making rapid growth. The trees and shrubs observed by Mr Gardner were planted by the Masterton Beautifying Society in May and June 1923 and Mr Gardner, who took an active part in the work at that time recorded the height measurements of those planted. Most of the trees were obtained in the Tarawa Ranges. The most prolific growth in the native border was that of a broad-leafed tainui, which was only 11 inches in height when it was planted and has now reached 23 feet. Two other trees have also done remarkably well, a brown beech (birch), one foot high at time of planting is now 28 feet high and a red beech, has grown from 2 feet to 31 feet. The beeches, it will be seen, have almost averaged a growth of two feet a year. Even in the case of some of the well-known native timber trees the growth has been considerable. A maire one foot high has reached 13 feet, a miro of 9 inches is now 10 feet and a totara of 2 feet has attained a height of 14 feet. Other growths recorded by Mr Gardner are: Pittosporums: Silver, 9 inches, now 14 feet; lemon, 6 inches, now 12 feet; Buchani, 1 foot, now 16 feet; kowhai, 15 inches, now 16 feet; hinau, 1 foot, now 15 feet; rata, 1 foot, now 6 feet. It will be noticed that the rata is the slowest grower of the collection. The growths recorded would probably have been even better if the trees had been planted in richer soil. EARLIER COMPARISONS. It is interesting to recall that some years ago there was a .considerable controversy as to the growth of native timber trees in comparison with that of exotics. The late Mr H. G. Matthews, when Chief Forester of New Zealand, studied the growth of native trees and cited the records of Mr J. W. Hall, of Parawai, Thames. These showed that a kauri, 23 years old, had a height growth per year of 1.49 ft.; rimu, 26 years old, 1.12 ft. per year; totara, 28 years old, 1.44 ft. per year; white pine, 25 years old, 1.40 ft. per year; and puriri, 26 years old, 1.41 ft. per year; giving an average of 26 years age, 1.37 ft. height growth per year and .34 inches diameter growth per year.

The growth of the five chief timber trees of mid-Europe is indicated by the following records from Sir William Schlick’s “Manual of Forestry” (all trees 30 years old): Oak, height growth per year, 1.06 ft.; beech, ,76ft.; Scottish pine, .96ft.; spruce,, ,63ft.; silver fir, .43ft.; an average of .77ft. height- growth per year and of .08in. diameter growth. In other words, at 30 years of age the New Zealand trees averaged over 10 inches thick and 41 feet high, at the same age the European trees averaged about 2£ inches thick and 23 feet high. It must be noted that the comparison is between native New Zealand trees grown in the open and European trees grown in a normal close forest. The greatest difference is in the diameter growth, that of the New Zealand trees being four times the European and the height growth twice. The opinion expressed by such a notable authority as the late Sir David Hutchins (formerly of the Indian Forest Service) was that the chief timberyielding trees of New Zealand were, with the possible exception of the white pine, even more rapid in their growth than the principal European trees. The kauri, for instance, far from being of very slow growth is a quick-growing tree. A kauri in Trounson’s Park, at Kaihu, grew on the average at the rate of 1 inch of diameter in 4.62 years, as against lin. in 7.02 years for the spruce and for the whole life of the tree the average increment was one inch in 5.56 years.