Dietrich Brandis and James Sykes Gamble

“ Timber of that size is marketable, but the timber of the natural forests which is at present brought to market in Burma has grown much more slowly, the chief reason being the annual forest fires, which harden and impoverish the soil. In the natural forests of Burma and India teak timber with a diameter of 24 in. is never less than 100 and often more than 200 years old. In future, the timber grown in plantations and in forests under regular management may be expected to be much faster grown ”

“ In Burma the oil is extracted from the timber on a small scale, to be used for medicinal purposes, by filling an earthen pot, which is placed inverted upon another, with chips of wood, and putting fire round it, upon which the oil runs down into the lower vessel. ”

“ Apart from the manner in which the tree had grown up in the forest, soil, elevation and climate have a great influence upon the grain and the mechanical qualities of teak as of other timbers. Most of the larger logs brought to market have an irregular crack or hollow in the centre, which commences at the butt and often runs up a long way. ”

“ It is not very hard, is easily worked, and takes a beautiful polish. It has great elasticity and strength, and is not very heavy. The average weight of perfectly seasoned wood fluctuates between 38 and 46 ℔ per cub. ft. [6] Its weight, therefore, is a little less than that of English oak. Green teak timber, however, is heavier than water, so that, unless thoroughly seasoned, the wood cannot be floated. In Burma, therefore, where the rivers are used to float the timber to the seaports, the method of seasoning teak by girdling has been practised from time immemorial. ”

“ Moreover, most teak seedlings which come up naturally are cut down to the ground by the fires of the hot season; some are killed, but many sprout again during the rains, and this is generally repeated year after year, until a sapling is produced strong enough to outlive the fire. ”

“ Larger girths, up to 25 ft., are not uncommon.
The teak tree does not usually form pure forests. It is associated with bamboos and with a great variety of other trees, which have little market value, and, as a rule, thrives best in such company. Hence in the plantations established in Burma the object has been to raise forests of teak mixed with bamboos and other trees.
Most of the teak timber produced in India is used in the country. The produce of the forests of Travancore, Cochin, the Madras presidency, Coorg, Mysore, Bombay, Berar and the Central Provinces is all so consumed. ”

“ Near the coast the tree is absent, and inland the most valuable forests are on low hills up to 3000 ft. It grows on a great variety of soils, but there is one indispensable condition—perfect drainage or a dry subsoil. On level ground, with deep alluvial soil, teak does not always form regularly shaped stems, probably because the subsoil drainage is imperfect. ”

“ The germination of the seed is slow and uncertain; a large amount of moisture is needed to saturate the spongy covering; many seeds do not germinate until the second or third year, and many do not germinate at all. ”

“ In its youth the tree grows with extreme rapidity. Two-year-old seedlings on good soil are 5 to 10 ft. high, and instances of more rapid growth are not uncommon. In the plantations which have been made since 1856 in Burma, the teak has on good soil attained an average height of 60 ft. ”

“ Nearly the whole of the imports came from Siam, and of the exports four-fifths were from Burma. The balance of the imports consisted of timber from Java, that of the exports of supplies sent from peninsular ports. Two-thirds of the exports went to the United Kingdom, the other chief markets being ordinarily Germany, Ceylon and Australia. The recent great increase in the general teakwood trade is evidenced by the fact that the imports increased in six years from 17,842 tons to 61,696 tons. ”