Most persons will have observed the effect
of heat radiation from rocks, or even from the walls of a building that
have been exposed to a summer's sun during the long day. At about six
P.M., when the air is cool, the sun-heat stored by absorption escapes
from its imprisonment, and thermometers would exhibit a difference of
many degrees if placed at two feet from the ground, and at fifty; the
rocks and earth have been heated like an oven. Trees will affect the
surface of the soil in the same manner that an umbrella protects an
individual from the surf, and upon lofty mountains they exercise a
marked influence upon the rainfall. Should the summits be naked, the
rocks become heated to a high degree, and should clouds pass overhead,
the vapour would not condense, but, on the contrary, it might disperse
upon contact with the heated surface. If the summits were clothed with
forests, the rocks and soil, being shaded from the sun, would remain
cool, and the low temperature of earth and foliage would condense the
vapour and produce rain. It is well known that trees exert a direct
influence upon meteorological phenomena, therefore should forests be
totally destroyed, a change may be expected in the temperature, attended
by a corresponding decrease in the rainfall. It is obvious that should a
country be entirely covered with trees and jungle, it will be too damp
and unhealthy for the occupation of man; and should it be absolutely
barren of forest, it will possess a minimum rainfall; therefore in all
countries that are expected to develop agricultural resources, the due
proportions of woods and forests require special attention.
In ancient days there can be no question that Cyprus was rich in timber,
and that the mountainous districts were thickly clothed to their summits
with valuable wood varying in species according to altitude. At the risk
of repetition I must describe the qualities which now exist, and which
were no doubt exported from the island, and became widely known and
appreciated in the early days of Cyprian prosperity.
Oaks.--There are several varieties of oak, but large park-like timber of
this species is exceedingly scarce, and although met with occasionally
in grand spreading trees with trunks of large girth, they are only
sufficient to prove the destruction that has befallen their race. It is
most probable that the oak was largely exported for ship-building; but
as an available forest-tree it may be said to have disappeared. The ilex
is the most common of all woods upon the Troodos range and upon other
mountains, but the natives have made such constant attacks upon this
quality for the manufacture of charcoal that it is seldom met with as a
forest-tree. It is extremely hardy, and through continual hacking, it
has grown into dense bushes which are generally about eight feet high;
but in very remote localities among the mountains I have found it in the
shape of timber growing to the height of forty feet. There is a third
variety with a prickly leaf resembling holly, of an intensely dark
green.
Pines.--I have only met with three varieties--the Pinus maritima, Pinus
laricio, and the stone pine. The latter is very rare, but may be seen at
Platraes. The natives invariably pick the cones of this species when
green for the sake of the small edible nuts afforded by the seeds.
The Pinus laricio is a handsome tree with a dark foliage and branches
that droop regularly from the summit, widening towards the base. It is
difficult to determine the maximum size that would be attained by this
species, as the Cypriotes seldom allow any tree to remain uninjured. The
usual size of the Laracio on the Troodos range is about fifty feet in
height, with a girth of six feet, but I have frequently seen specimens
of nine feet in girth, and about seventy to eighty feet in height.
The Pinus maritima has a lighter foliage and the branches are more
spreading, but the size is about the same as the Laricio. Both these
species are rich in tar and turpentine.
Cypress.--There are two varieties--the dwarf, which covers the
flat-topped limestone hills of the Carpas district, and the fragrant
species which grows upon the heights of Troodos and all that range which
extends to Poli-ton-Krysokhus.
The dwarf-cypress attains a height of about twenty feet, and is
exceedingly hard and durable. The fragrant species varies from thirty to
thirty-five feet, with a stem of six, to sometimes eight feet in
circumference. The wood is highly aromatic; and I have already described
it as resembling a mixture of sandal-wood and cedar. This tree is known
by the Cypriotes as kypresses, while the dwarf variety is known as the
"wild cypress," and is called by them "aoratu."
Plane (Platanus).--This tree is generally found in the ravines among the
mountains, on the borders of streams, and would grow to a large size,
but its straight young stems are much sought after by the natives for
various purposes, and it is seldom allowed a chance of arriving
unscathed at maturity. Its light green foliage is highly ornamental,
mixed with the dark shades of the ilex in the deep bottoms of the
gorges; and wherever a never-failing stream is met with the plane may be
expected.
The elm, ash, maple, walnut, mulberry, peach, apricot, apple, pear,
filbert, fig, plum, cherry, orange, lemon, pomegranate, are common, but
as they do not come within the category of trees indigenous to the
natural forests of the island, I shall not include them.
Olive.--The wild olive forms a considerable portion of the low
scrub-woods of the Carpas district, and the young trees, when
transplanted and grafted, become the accepted olives of cultivation.
There is no reason why the wild olive should not be grafted in its
natural position the same as the caroub.
