"Self Pruning" Gum Trees!!!
Submitted: Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 16:08
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GerardM
Came across this on a recent visit to Teewah Beach. About 5km along the Freshwater Track a Gum Tree had dropped a branch across the track just before we arrived. Spoke to a guy who had just been through there 30 mins before and it wasn't there then.
Beware!! The only thing unusual about this day was how hot and still the conditions were. So if you think these things only come down in windy/stormy weather, think again...
The misses wouldn't let me open the sunroof after that ;-)
Sunroof or no sunroof there is little doubt this could have ruined someone's day!
Safe travels,
Gerard
Reply By: GerardM - Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 16:14
Reply By: Notso - Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 17:01
Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 17:01
Mate, I lived in a Mixed eucalypt forest when I was a kid and it could be a totally still day, then a sound like an artillery piece firing and huge branches would fall off trees.
They called some of the gums/eucalypts "Widow Makers" as the tree fellers would often get hit by falling branches.
Someone explained it to me why it happens, not sure if it's right or not but he reckoned during the hot weather the gums pumped heaps of
water and the load in the branches became too much and they shed one every now and then.
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Follow Up By: Member - John and Val W (ACT) - Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 17:57
Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 17:57
Some gums are more prone to dropping branches than others. River red gums (E. camaldulensis) are particularly prone to it, and for this reason its not a good idea to
camp or leave a vehicle under these trees.
During the drought my gums (mainly Blakeley's red gum) here near
Canberra have dropped many more branches than usual. My theory is that a lack of
water causes the wood to dry out and become brittle.
Some other gums have the common name of brittle gum because of their tendency to drop branches, often on still hot days.
Val.
| J and V
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Follow Up By: Member - Bucky, the "Mexican"- Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 03:01
Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 03:01
Notso
Try hiking in the
Vic high country.
Trees dropping branches all day. One thing for sure is that if you were to be under one, you wouldn't feel a thing.
Cheers
Bucky
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Reply By: GerardM - Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 21:55
Friday, Dec 26, 2008 at 21:55
Third time lucky...
Image 1Image 2
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Follow Up By: Dunco (NSW) - Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 11:42
Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 11:42
Are these all Council workers ???
Seems like a lot of people are standing around watching one bloke work :-)
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Reply By: Member - Royce- Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 00:08
Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 00:08
Branches like that drop at any time on my farm. Particularly my red gums. I cut enough firewood for winter each year from them.
Last year daughter and I were walking under one and heard a crack... took another step as the branch fell behind us hitting us with leaves on its edge. Phew!!
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Reply By: Geoff (Newcastle, NSW) - Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 13:40
Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 13:40
A friend of a friend owns a property on the Namoi River in NSW's North West.
Every
Easter a group of locals go out there
camping.
Easter just gone in the middle of the night one of the river gums shed a branch, straight through the roof of a pop top camper.
The branch grazed the back of the woman sleeping, no real damage to her thankfully.
But her husband wasn't so lucky, one of the roof stays bleep tered and pierced his back travelling down his body just under the skin.
It caused a full scale emergency. The rescue
services were called and the bloke was airlifted to
Tamworth Base Hospital.
The camper was a total write off.
Even the locals get complacent with the river gums at times!
They are one scary bloody tree,
well worth the same respect as a Tiger Snake!
Geoff
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Follow Up By: Gramps (NSW) - Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 14:16
Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 14:16
Yep, very cautious when staying at Kinchega NP earlier this year. The size of some of the earlier fallen limbs was scarey.
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Reply By: Wayne's 60 - Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 13:41
Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 13:41
Unfortunately they don't always miss
Story
Cheers,
Wayne.
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Reply By: Tim - Stratford (VIC) - Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 16:35
Saturday, Dec 27, 2008 at 16:35
You've got to keep an open mind too - a couple of years ago at a
park in South Gippsland, Vic, a group of campers checked their surrounding prior to setting up
camp. Strong winds were forecast, so they did the right thing and camped away from trees.
During the evening when the wind came up a very tall tree on the other side of the river came down. Tragically it was tall enough that when down it easily reached the
camp, falling on to a tent and killing a lady instantly.
Tim - Stratford.
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