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["Lon J. Rombough" <lonrom@hevanet.com>]

The alders here in Oregon sure aren't that rot resistant.  Though they do decay in odd ways here.  I've seen chunks come apart in layers, producing what are almost tubes as the inner part rotted out and left an outer layer.
-Lon Rombough
Grapes, writing, consulting, my book, The Grape Grower, at http://www.bunchgrapes.com  Winner of the Garden Writers Association "Best Talent in Writing" award for 2003.
On Aug 31, 2005, at 7:17 AM, Charles Paradise wrote:

I had always heard that black locust and chestnut woods were those resistant to water if driven into the ground.  This webpage claims alder wood possesses the same rot resistance?  Has anyone heard this before?  Is it true? 
 Alders have an extra-ordinary ability to resist the decaying influence of water. Its timber is almost indefinitely rot proof in a wet environment and its trunks are the foundation of much of the glory of Venice and the graceful houses lining the canals of Amsterdam. Its shiny leathery leaves resist the onslaught of the wet autumn and early winter rains far better than any other deciduous tree. The leaves do not colour in the autumn, just become darker and wither to brown or black and often can be found on the branches as late as December! Its tiny seeds have two corky wings, containing air bubbles, which helps them to float on water in their search for a place to settle.
> http://www.the-tree.org.uk/BritishTrees/alder.htm 
>