Trees in Australia

Posted on November 9th, 2010

Archived in Native Trees, Rainforest Trees, Trees

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Unusual trees in Australia

Unusual trees of Australia

Australia has always been known for its unusual collection of flora and fauna. From duck billed platypus, wallaby to eucalyptus, The Australian continent has made its contribution to the plant and animal kingdom. Even though some of these plants and animals are well known, there are a few unusual trees found here that do not share the same celebrity status of the above mentioned life forms. In this article we will talk about a few trees that are considered unusual. Most trees we are generally accustomed to, share some basic qualities. That is, they have to be planted in an area that has good soil and sun.

What makes the unusual trees of Australia unusual is that they do not grow in traditional areas and in a traditional way. On top of this list of unusual trees is perhaps the “Strangler fig tree”. This tree gets propagated by bird droppings. What happens is, a bird will leave its droppings behind on a branch of a tree. If the droppings contain seeds from the fruit of the strangler tree, it will eventually sprout on the branch. As time goes by it will send roots towards the ground and eventually engulf the entire host tree. It is like a giant python, which will “swallow” the entire host tree, eventually killing it.

Unlike some of the other unusual trees found in Australia, the strangler fig tree always has this type of growth pattern. Trees such as the Angophora costata (Rose gum) tree are not necessarily unusual by themselves, but can grow in some unusual places. An example of that would be a rose gum tree growing in Ku-ring-gai national park. It started its life in the crack of some rocks and has since grown to be a huge tree. The roots of the tree have taken over much of the rock surface. The rose gum is also known as the rose apple tree.

Next on the list of unusual trees is the camphor laurel tree. What makes this tree unusual is its large low slung branches and huge root structure. The roots can come out of the ground and destroy anything in its path. This is why this tree is not encouraged to grow near a house or building. It can also grow to be quite tall, up to 90ft in height. The leaves have camphor like smell to them, hence the name camphor tree.

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