The redwood trees are native to California, but I photographed them beside Canberra's airport in Australia. They are part of the legacy of Walter Burley Grifin, the American who designed the city.

[southlander]

Nice one.

[normhead]

The redwood trees are native to California, but I photographed them beside Canberra's airport in Australia. They are part of the legacy of Walter Burley Grifin, the American who designed the city.

Next we'll be hearing about the redwoods that have spread all over Australia and are wiping out the Kangaroos...

I like the crispness of those pine needles.

[southlander]

Can't see them doing too well in the desert country. Pinus radiata (aka pinus warpicus) however infests the country in the form of plantation timber for housing construction.

[RobG]

Next we'll be hearing about the redwoods that have spread all over Australia and are wiping out the Kangaroos...
I like the crispness of those pine needles.

There's plenty of other weeds that have affected native animals - although it's mainly cats, rabbits, goats and foxes that have done damage. I don't think that redwoods will cause "The Day of the Triffids" to become reality. GM crops like canola on the other hand...

Can't see them doing too well in the desert country. Pinus radiata (aka pinus warpicus) however infests the country in the form of plantation timber for housing construction.

Pinus radiata aka California Coast Pine - another fine import from the USA. The trees here in Canberra nearly died during the drought, so no, they wouldn't do well in the 60% of Oz which gets even less rain. There used to be an arboretum in the ACT which had both redwoods and sequioas planted in the 1930s, but sadly they were all lost in the 2003 firestorm. Australia has some fantastic native hardwoods and softwoods, but they aren't generally grown as plantation timbers here because imported pines grow faster.

[Lupine]

Are redwoods as detested in Australia as eucalyptus trees are here in the USA?

[GeoJerry]

Are redwoods as detested in Australia as eucalyptus trees are here in the USA?

I'm a big fan of eucalyptus! Not a bad swap, redwoods for eucalyptus.

[Cee Cee]

cool looking shot, unusual two so close together I would have thought.
cheers.

[southlander]

@Lupine. No, redwoods are uncommon in Australia to my knowledge. We have little country with enough rain.

Eucalyptus species defines Australia in my view. You aclimatise to the scent of them here, but overseas I can spot their scent a mile off.

I'm aware you have quite a few of them in California, I've noticed them around San Diego for instance.

[RobG]

Are redwoods as detested in Australia as eucalyptus trees are here in the USA?

I agree with Southlander - aside from the ones which were lost in the fires, the ones at Canberra airport are the only redwoods I can recall seeing in Australia except perhaps for a single tree here or there in an arboretum. I didn't realise that people disliked the Eucalypts in California - it was kind of cool to see Sydney Blue Gums in the Presidio.

[RobG]

I'm a big fan of eucalyptus! Not a bad swap, redwoods for eucalyptus.

Glad to hear that the Ozzie tree has at least one Californian fan!

cool looking shot, unusual two so close together I would have thought.
cheers.

I think I have a photo of one in Muir Woods (California) which had two trunks. But you're right, the majority in natural forest aren't so close together. The trees here seem to be growing in clumps, possibly seeds or new trunks from the roots of one tree?

[slowpez]

Nicely captured. Interesting how they arrived in Australia and more interesting that they are alive and doing well.

[southlander]

@slowpez: your comment made me also wonder how the redwoods ended up in Oz, and as soon as I googled Canberra redwoods, the penny dropped. Walter Burley Griffin, the designer of Canberra. Canberra was built from scratch to be Australia's capital after the country federated in 1901. Sydney and Melbourne were fierce rivals so a new city, Canberra was built roughly half way between them. The city was designed by Walter Burley Griffin, an American architect and landscaper from Chicago.

I suspect RobG was in Pialligo Redwood Forest, Walter Burley Griffin's grove of redwood trees. The redwoods were planted against the advice of Canberra's Arborist, Thomas Charles Weston. Only 3,000 of the original 122,000 planted survived. Despite this, the forest holds the important title of Australia's largest stand of mature Redwood species. The Pialligo Redwood Forest is registered on the Commonwealth Heritage List.

And I've just discovered that Walter Burley Griffin is also credited with the creation of the carport.

So there you go!

[daacon]

Wow some nice shots but better history - what did we do before Google ? (make $hit up ha!)

[RobG]

@slowpez: your comment made me also wonder how the redwoods ended up in Oz, and as soon as I googled Canberra redwoods, the penny dropped. Walter Burley Griffin, the designer of Canberra. Canberra was built from scratch to be Australia's capital after the country federated in 1901. Sydney and Melbourne were fierce rivals so a new city, Canberra was built roughly half way between them. The city was designed by Walter Burley Griffin, an American architect and landscaper from Chicago.

Another important factor in the location of Canberra was for it to be far enough inland to be out of the range of naval guns. Nobody at the time ever imagined missiles or aircraft capable of carrying weapons. There was a competition to design the city, which Burley Griffin won. I'm very glad that the buildings which appeared in his wife's illustrations never became a reality however - having something like the Whitehouse on Capital Hill would be rather bizarre.

I suspect RobG was in Pialligo Redwood Forest, Walter Burley Griffin's grove of redwood trees. The redwoods were planted against the advice of Canberra's Arborist, Thomas Charles Weston. Only 3,000 of the original 122,000 planted survived. Despite this, the forest holds the important title of Australia's largest stand of mature Redwood species. The Pialligo Redwood Forest is registered on the Commonwealth Heritage List.

Correct, it was the Pialligo Forest. I doubt that there's 3000 left now, after the most recent drought. The largest trees in the forest are clearly stressed and possibly dying. Many are in excellent condition at the moment however, given the rain over the last couple of years. The really sad loss was the Redwoods and Sequoias which were in the arboretum in the Brindabellas, because they were much healthier and taller - the microclimate there was far better suited to them.

Trees are not something which Australia has a good record on protecting. We once had the world's tallest trees, but they've been logged. We do still have the world's tallest flowering plant - a Eucalypt species called the Mountain Ash. A Mountain Ash was cut down in the 19th century which was measured at 120 metres, and would have been the tallest known tree ever recorded I believe.

And I've just discovered that Walter Burley Griffin is also credited with the creation of the carport.

I hadn't heard that bit of trivia!