PLANTATION BOARD

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25767, 31 March 1949, Page 3

PLANTATION BOARD

ANNUAL TOUR OF MEMBERS PROPERTIES INSPECTED The contrasting views of residents

curved during the dry season were the subject of comment by members of the Selwyn Plantation Board when they held their annual tour of inspection of the board’s properties last week At a meeting of the board a' letter was received from a farmer concerning damage to his pasture and the destruction of a fence during a plantation fire. It was stated that a fire break had been ploughed on the farmer's land to stop the spread of the fire, and that fencing material had been supplied to him since by the board. Members criticised the farmer’s attitude. and said that the efforts of the board s staff and volunteer firemen had saved his house. They considered it was “a poor view to take” when volunteer fire-fighters turned out to plantation fires in their own time and at their own expense. One of these fire-fighters, MrG. Lili, of Rolleston, was visited by the members of the board- during their tour and. on their behalf, the chairman (Mr T. W. Preston) expressed appreciation of the services he had given. Mr Lili operates an Army truck, fitted with a 400-gallon water tank and a motor which gives a considerable pressure in the hose. When members of the board inspected plantations where there had been fires, Mr E. A. Cooney (superintend-ent-secretary to the board) said the trouble was not so much in getting a fire under control but in keeping it from starting up again. It was necessary, he said, to go round practically every stump and make certain that no smouldering material would be fanned into flame by the wind. Effect of Drought During the inspection members saw striking examples, on light and medium land, of trees which are drought-resistant and those which are n ®ti Oregon pine suffered badly and all over the plain this species showed Signs of dying. The superintendent pointed out that not only young 'trees were affected, but trees up to 15 and 16 years of age had suffered. At one plantation. Oregon, Pinus laricio, and some of the eucalypts were dying, while cedars and Cupressus macrocarpa were apparently healthy. The nursery at Darfield was inspected and particular interest was shown in the flooring of the board’s new offices there. This is done in larch from trees grown in the board’s plantations. It was kiln dried, specially treated, and then oiled. This has brought out the grain of the wood, in effective patterns. The seed used at the nursery is gathered from the board’s plantations and is treated in a special seed house. Mr Cooney said that approximately 350.000 trees were planted in a season. In reply to a member, who was curious about the yield of seed from oregon, he said there were at least 14,000 trees to one pound of seed. When plantations, which suffered badly in the gales of 1945. were inspected it was stated that there was a slackening in the demand for insignis timber. It was noticeable in some burned and gale-affected areas that gorse was taking charge and the necessity for replanting was emphasised. Attention was drawn to the prevalence of gorse and the increased fire menace in eucalyptus areas, where sunlight penetrated, compared with pine plantations, which were clear of undergrowth. The tour concluded with an inspection of new planting areas in different districts and young plantations in the Bankside and Burnham districts.