July 07, 2008

Paperbark - moving in. Australia, not just a victim anymore. The paperbark, Melaleuca quinquenervia, is listed as a noxious pest in the USA and several US states. It's particularly problematic in Florida and Hawaii. Take that rest of the world!
posted by polychrome 16 years ago
  • Suck it, Yanks.
  • Yanks haven't worked out how to 'ring bark' yet. Lock n' load Melaleuca quinquenervia. :)
  • So, you gave the world a dangerous tree, we gave a Bush. Not even close.
  • This post is totally top of the page material. There's no justice in this world. *writes to 'Bashi*
  • *checks 'Noxious Pest' list for "Kid, the Quidnunc", 'cuz that'd be pretty funny*
  • *comforts poly* There, there, Hank is just a noxious pest with all his showoff posting and his 'me-first' comments. So, you gave the world a dangerous tree, we gave a Bush. RTD for the win! *snickers* Does anybody from down under know what these trees are? They sound like they'd do well here and soon be tall enough to produce shade. Everything else we've planted has to stall out for ten years at 3 feet before it gets enough root system to put on height. *tired of hunkering down under tree with three little limbs and twenty leaves*
  • Suck it, Yanks. *pops soothing, mentho-lyptus lozenge into mouth* Aaah, that hits the spot. Thanks, Hank!
  • BlueHorse, they appear to be eucalypti.
  • I was incorrect: they are a hybrid of Chinese Willow and White Willow.
  • And no, I didn't spend all that time looking it up. I typed in 'austree' into Wikipedia just now. Which probably means they *are* eucalypts. [citation needed]
  • There used to be laws against that.
  • Chinese Willows and White Willows hybridizing, I mean. Oh, never mind...
  • There used to be laws against that. Against posting replies without citation?
  • BlueHorse - hard to tell what they are but I think that they might be a variant of Eucalyptus globulus, or the Tasmanian bluegum. They are a favourite plantation tree in Australia because they grow fast. A couple of photos here for comparison with the Austree site - the blueish tinge on the second photo down is pretty distinctive. Also, they smell. Not bad, per se, but...noticeable.
  • The willow theory seems more likely, since all the eucalypti I've met are evergreen. Also, the leaf attachment structure is different from what I see in California.
  • Is it also available in hardcover? Oops, misread.
  • Are these trees a problem to have around? Messy, losing branches, sucking up all the water or getting into the septic system? Hmmmm, so if they smell, does it turn the place into a giant Vicks Vaporub Inhaler?
  • The deciduous bit is where I might be wrong - blue gums do get thinner foliage in winter but definitely not deciduous as such. And they don't have a strong eucalyptus smell. It's a muskier note than that.
  • They're willows. There is no real doubt, I was joking about Wiki's inaccuracy before.
  • /cue: Dennis Moore sketch quotes
  • Cool.
  • Number one: The Larch. The.       Larch. The larch.
  • Oh, willow, tit-willow, tit-willow!
  • There's a nice pair of tits in the previous comment.
  • That's enough from you RTD. I'm starting to get titchy with these titivating titbits you keep bringing up. But if you really want to read a story about having a pair of great tits, go here