Kauri Pine

Kauri Pine, Dammara australis, a coniferous tree from 150 feet to 200 feet in height, native to New Zealand. It yields a hard, brittle resin resembling copal, and known as Kauri or Cowdie gum. This resin is also found in a fossil state. The annual export of the resin is valued at about £300,000, nearly half the amount exported going to the United States, and the other half - from 3,000 to 3,500 tons - to England. It is used in the manufacture of varnishes. The wood of the tree is much valued in New Zealand and Australia for lightness, elasticity, strength, and durability, it being well suited both for masts and for planking.