Access to membership content:
As soon as payment is made you will have access to the content. Generally all you will need to do is refresh the page you were visiting and assuming you are logged in, then the additional content will be displayed. For some memberships more pages and posts will be available.
To view how the system works, you can get access to addiction which is free ! 😁 Its my helpful tips for giving up smoking, though the content may be helpful for those with other addictions.
Any issues, get in touch.
Posts are displayed in chronological order from the newest to the oldest and will include posts from all categories.
Bog Lizard
Some Q & A
Q Eucalyptus consume all the nutrients in the area, and nothing grows below them.
A There seems to be mixed opinion about this. So far as I can deduce some Eucalyptus shed quite a lot of bark, and this may cover the ground and reduce the undergrowth, while some varieties shed less bark, and therefore there is more in the way of vegetation beneath them. This is the only explanation I can think of for the divergent views.
Q Eucalyptus are thirsty.
A Yes, large Eucalyptus trees do take up a lot of water, though this is the same for all large trees ! Eucalyptus are evergreen, and provided there is sufficient warmth and sunlight, they will continue to grow and take up water, even in winter.
Q Eucalyptus are an invasive species.
A I have never seen any evidence to support this. Certainly all life will colonise where it can, but so far as Eucalyptus requiring a lot of maintenance, this is simply false. Indeed the opposite is true, Eucalyptus can be left to get on with it Come back in a few years and harvest your firewood.
A Perhaps the concern centres around such plants as Bamboo, which puts out suckers that can pop up here or there and start a new shoot, or colonise a new area.
Eucalyptus don’t have suckers, so you’ll be grand 😉
Q Nothing grows beneath Eucalyptus trees 🤣
A I’ve never experienced any issues, and judging by the reaction to my post on Face Book it seems no one else has either 😁 though don’t take my word for it, do a few searches for photos of Eucalyptus trees and check out what’s growing beneath them 😉
Q Eucalyptus can be grown as a stockade.
A I can’t currently give a definitive answer on this, though I have started an experiment to find out. I see no reason why not. A living stockade which won’t need any maintenance, and you get a lot of biomass every few years when you cut the stockade back to chest height. Sounds like a plan.
Q Eucalyptus are short lived.
A From the research I have done, older forests in Australia have Eucalyputs Gunnii that are known to be in excess of 300 years old. Some newer commercial plantations in California where they are 150 years old and still growing strongly. This is comparable with Irelands native hardwood trees such as Oak & Ash.
A An Australian radio broadcast I listened to suggested that Eucalyptus can live as long as 500 years, so certainly not short lived.
Q Livestock, deer, hares etc will eat the young trees.
A I’ve researched extensively and there are few reports of this ever happening. The hares around my home and Eucalyptus trees simply aren’t interested, found one sleeping on top of the poly pots one morning 😮
Q Eucalyptus are poisonous to cattle.
A This is a complete myth ! Yew trees are poisonous to livestock, and the names may sound similar and hence the confusion. Eucalyptus leaves are full of Eucalyptus oil, and I certainly wouldn’t consider eating anything like Vicks vapour chest rub. Research does suggest that in large enough quantities Eucalyptus leaves would be poisonous, however assuming livestock are desperate enough to eat the few leaves that fall, they would vomit it out long before dangerous enough quantities are consumed 🤮
Q The leaves on my Eucalyptus have turned red.
A Initially when I planted my Viminalis they had leaves which ranged in colour from deep red and purple, to the blue of Gunnii and Cinerea. NOTE the blue colour of Gunnii and Cinerea is their natural juvenile colour.
Those of mine with reds and purples grew out of it. The general consensus is that Eucalyptus trees, like all other trees withdrawn the chlorophyl in the leaves if they are under stress. Lack of hydration or wind burn being the two culprits for those I have sown, though soil contamination may also have been a possibility for my mini forest as I sprayed the year before with D50. It doesn’t seem to affect them for a significant period of time.
Deciduous trees reabsorb the chlorophyl from their leaves during the Autumn before they are shed. As above my intuitive feeling is that this is what Eucalyptus trees also do, though the leaves stay on for longer.
Q Eucalyptus trees deter wasps and midges.
A I can’t give a definite that they don’t deter wasps, though you do get Eucalyptus honey, i.e. honey made by bees gathering nectar from Eucalyptus flowers. So I would assume the deterrent effect on wasps would be marginal if at all.
Personally here in West Clare on a calm warm night, the midges are just as annoying whether I am standing next to a Eucalyptus tree or not
Sorry to disappoint 🙁
Though I have read that if you crush up the leaves it will deter midges and insects. I’ve yet to test the theory; I’ll update once I have more information 😉
Q Eucalyptus wood burns too hot.
A Well work it out for yourselves I’m almost tempted to throw in a few expletives 🤨 Do you burn coal in your stove or fireplace ? Coal burns hot, and you control the temperature by restricting how much oxygen is supplied to the fire. Same with Eucalyptus and every other fuel you use 😉
Q Does burning Eucalyptus produce creosote in the chimney.
A If you burn wood of any variety when it is still wet, then it will produce creosote. To the best of my knowledge Eucalyptus don’t produce more creosote than any other species of tree, be that Ash, Oak, Pine or Spruce.
Q Eucalyptus trees are shallow rooted and blow over in high winds.
A According to National Geographic Eucalyptus roots can go down 40 metres in search of hydration (not normally an issue in Ireland, though remember the drought of 2018 ☀️ Anyways my Eucalyputs trees have been more stable than many of the native trees and Sitka Spruce which blew down during Storm Hannah. Generally during the storms of early 2020 my Eucalyptus trees were fine, though after some very heavy rain which softened the ground I did stake a few. The tallest were solid 🙂 and by mid May only one remains staked.
So Eucalyptus aren’t shallow rooted and don’t blow over during high winds, just another myth conception about Eucalyptus 🙄
Some interesting reading
If you are interested in growing trees and forests, you may find some of the information in the links below helpful. They contain information which will improve the health and vigour of your trees and forest.
Remember to check out what I have to say about improving your soil with Milk Kefir
Got a Question
get in touch and let me know. I will do my best to answer it.
Pricing
Pricing depends on such things as, availability, how easy it is to germinate a particular variety, and how many survive transplanting into plug trays.
Plants are not innate, and Eucalyptus grow fast. If I have a lot of a particular variety the price will reflect this, conversely if I don’t have a lot of a particular item, then they will be priced accordingly.
Therefore prices on any promotional leaflets / fliers, and other advertising are subject to change.
