Ka Nupepa Elele, Volume XII, Number 14, 15 November 1890 — THE CORK TREE. [ARTICLE]

THE CORK TREE.

An Import»nt IudiiKtrj Wlikli Hawall tteTelop.

Tlie availjible f6rests of cork trees are already relatively extensive, although havdly suffieient to sup|j!y demaijds now mada on Ihem, or whieh as tlie world grow in prosperity muslT»e madeontheraj for t'aere is liardly aziy end to the uses for cork, and none of the substitutes for it ivliich have yet been tried are very Batisfiictory or promise to take its plaee to any great 1 extent. The latest estimates of exieting areas of āvailable cork oak forests made their exteut from 3,000,000 to 3,soo,ooojacres of whieli about one-luilf ineluding those on its African possessioris belongs to France. The wood of the cork oak i? heavy ,eOarse-gi\Hined and of a yo-llow—bro\vi* color; it shrinks aiui ws vps badly in seasoning and decays rapid3y when exposed to the action of the atmosphere. It has little value in the arf,s, but furiiishos auseful fuol and mnkes good chiireoaL The inneu' bark it rioh iu taimhi , a:ul treos too old or unfit to produoe cork, are cut for tho sake of the ijiuer -

bark. Tho cork oak is an lufcero£tiny: treo to Amei'ioHU», as it> cultivutu)n uow scems dostineJ to beoomo aud important iiKlustry in Califovuiu. w hoio Uie climate nnil tlio in iīiauy' p;irts of tho Btute uro [s«it«d to pixxlueo it. This is not a iueiv iliooi,), a* iwes l»avo hoon, jtio\ving now for sc\orul yoars īn Oalifornia antl ha\o ahv{uly juv.lncoiV cropts of cork of o.\colSont <jnalitv . It, is nroluiblo tliat īho troo will v,ttltor nnnv i i apitlly in OaliU'iui.i tlmn it vWs in its n;Uivo oountrv. al-| tho«gh th« qwality of tho soii. tho o\(h>suvo in wlnoh tho tiw s aro 1»1;uhh1. hHvd olim;ito ;uul tlu hwu . mont whioh tho troos vooi\<. will inHuonoo, of oouvso. tho wpKliU l ® witU whioh tho U.uk is Uo\olōjv.\t. in Afrioa it is fouiul that th x ĪsVos, whieh. tho uH>st rsjnvUy vl«oo hnii of t!v |>ooro:it qua!i!y\ .nnd thāt wiīhiw oortain limā; tho slo\vor tho troon gvow tlio t:unv \.siu «blo tho |»i\huu-i . lu is uot īo sh.w. in whieh o;»s\ tho Kuk losos somo of tho oh»s{ uHy whieh nu\les it vnlu&blo, Tho eou

ditions whieh ināiienoe* tho develop-j m<?nt oī <>nfk are so numeroas and complio&ted that the product of all! tho troos in a grovc or forest ean never attain the same unifonni{y of j thiekiiess or quality in any giveh tinie, This is so well understood in ! the countries where cork is -growii that tne best inefchod of harvegting has beon found to be to go over the forest every twO or three vears and remove the bark from such trees as are covered with merehantable cork, and 1101 to strip all the trees at the same time. All thēse matters raust of eourse be <fonsidered in connection with planting forests of cork- oak . in California, The planting and care of such forests in Portugal and S}?ain has long been an important industry, aml thoro is nn Teason whv tliey may not be made so in California, where the loeal eonsumption of cork is already enormous, although the wine ilidustry there is hardly more than in its infaney. „