Oil of Callitris.
Oil of Callitris.—The pine trees of Australia belong to the genus Callitris, of which only one or two species are found outside of Australasia and New Zealand. The wood of these trees is of great value as building timber because of the fact that it is not attacked by white ants. According to Baker and Smith ("Research on the Pine Trees of Australia," 1910) this protection is due to the presence of a phenol-like body, to which they give the name callitrol. The constitution of this substance which they have obtained from the wood of C. glauca they have not as yet determined. Several of the Australian species yield a resin with the same properties as those of Sandarac, but at present they have not been employed commercially as sources of this resin. The term cypress pine is applied in Australia to a number of these trees.
