Untouched from Hidden Places

Located just below the ridge line on the southern side of Stapleton Reserve.

Grass Trees (Xanthorrhoea johnsonii) grow only in Australia. These remarkable plants have a life span of over 600 years. The trunk takes a decade to form initially as it is composed of a mass of old leaf bases held together by a natural resin. It is then a further 20 years or more before the mass of thin, linear leaves rises above it. From then on the growth rate is only about 1 meter every 100 years. The plant on the left would have been well established when Captain Cook sailed past more than two centuries ago.

Angophora costata - Common name: Smooth Barked Apple or Sydney Red Gum. Grows to 20 meters with distorted shape. Smooth bark with annual colour changes from red to orange to pink to white to gray to green. The chameleon of the eucalyptus family and a photographers delight.