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23 Mar 2018

Celebrating the humble gum

Did you know that 23 March is National Eucalypt Day? Many of our visitors and wildlife enjoy the iconic eucalyptus trees in Centennial Parklands.

Eucalypts make up almost 1,000 of the 15,000 trees planted in the Park with over 30 different species represented. Birds, possums and huntsman call these gums home with many more insects benefiting from their flowers and hollows.

Our forest of Flooded Gums

Eucalyptus grandis, also known as Flooded Gum or Rose Gum, and can be seen along Carrington Drive in Sandstone Ridge. The Flooded Gum is a tall smooth barked eucalyptus with a distinctive stocking of fibrous bark at the base of the trunk. This is a tall tree reaching heights of 50 metres to 60 metres under ideal growing conditions. Eucalyptus grandis natural range is from Newcastle up the Australian east coast as far as the Atherton tableland. Flooded gums are closely related to Eucalyptus saligna the Sydney blue gum and are often mistaken for each other.

It produces small creamy white flowers in winter and can reach tree heights of over 30m. Sandstone Ridge is an area of the parklands that receives regular moisture making it perfect for growing these majestic trees. The Centennial Parklands Arboriculture team recently planted a number of new Flooded Gums as part of the Parklands tree succession planting program.

Our expanding woodland of grandis

Eucalyptus grandis is the species of the tallest recorded tree in NSW. It can be found just outside of Bulahdelah in Myall Lakes National Park and is known locally as ‘The Grandis’ and reaches 76m. It lost its crown long ago but continues to grow and break records. This one is about 400 years old and has survived several bush fires and logging events. A tree such as this acts as a mother to the forest below, providing seed for genetically superior trees for repopulating and provides habitat for numerous animals and birds. Our expanding woodland of grandis is only about 40 years old and is one of the more self sustaining and ecologically active areas in the Parklands.

Introducing Rainbow Gums to the Parklands

The Centennial Parklands Arboriculture team is pleased to have recently acquired six young Eucalyptus deglupta or Rainbow Gums. They are only about two years old so they won’t have bright colours for another few years. They are still in the nursery so visitors will have to wait until they saplings are old enough to be introduced into the Parklands to see them. Stay tuned as we will be announcing their location in the near future.

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