Academic literature on the topic 'Eucalyptus Victoria'

Analysis of faecal pellets from Petaurus norfolcensis in northern and central Victoria showed that it ate insects, principally Coleoptera and lepidopteran larvae obtained from the foliage of Eucalyptus and Acacia, and plant exudates, especially Eucalyptus sap and Acacia gum. Diet was broadly similar to that of its congeners P. australis and P. breviceps but differed in the ubiquitous presence of insect remains, the preponderance of caterpillars (particularly the noxious Doratifera sp.) and the relative insignificance of spiders. Eucalyptus nectar and pollen, as well as lerps, which are important to other Petaurus spp. elsewhere, appeared to be less important components of the diet of P. norfolcensis at our main study site. This result was probably due to these food items being unavailable when we collected the pellets. The items were heavily utilised at another site. The availability of pollen and nectar may be irregular and unpredictable in eucalypt open forests of low species diversity. Absence of this rich source of protein and nitrogen may be partially compensated for by the relatively high diversity and density of foliage invertebrates.

Novel genetic accessions of Eucalyptus polybractea from a previously untested, hotter and drier part of the species’ natural range were tested in a common garden trial at a semi-arid site in NSW, Australia. Eucalyptus polybractea is a mallee eucalypt cultivated for essential oils (1,8-cineole), bioenergy and carbon sequestration on dryland sites in southern Australia (sites receiving about 450 mm mean annual rainfall, MAR). A trial of six previously untested provenances from the relatively hot, dry part of the species’ natural range in South Australia (SA) (250–450 mm MAR) was established alongside seven provenances from New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria within a commercial plantation in NSW. The trial was assessed at age 3.7 years for growth and oil characteristics. While survival was excellent, most of the SA sources were slower growing and of sub-standard oil concentration and quality relative to those from Victoria and NSW. However, a single SA provenance, with the highest oil concentration and 1,8-cineole percentage of all provenances tested, may have potential as a source of selected germplasm. Infusion of SA material into the breeding populations of E. polybractea, which are currently based on NSW and Victorian selections only, may provide more resilience in the face of hotter and drier temperatures expected under projected climate change scenarios, and/or allow the introduction of the species to hotter and drier climates in Australia or other parts of the world with semi-arid climates. However, high-intensity selection of infusions will be required to maintain the growth and oil characteristics in the existing breeding population.

Ants were collected from the canopies of mallee eucalypts at Wyperfeld National Park in north-western Victoria by beating foliage on ten occasions from September 1979 to December 1980. The study was conducted at two adjacent sites: one that had been burnt by a wildfire during early 1977, and the other long unburnt. Both sites contained a mixture of three mallee eucalypt species: Eucalyptus dumosa, E. foecunda and E. incrassata. In contrast to the canopies of other eucalypt formations elsewhere in southern Australia, abundance and diversity of ants were very high. Ants represented 43-69% of all invertebrates, and a total of 44 ant species from 19 genera was collected. Iridomyrmex and Camponotus respectively contributed 10 and 11 species, and the most abundant ants were species of Iridomyrmex, Monomorium and Crematogaster. Ant composition was broadily similar at the two sites, and on different canopy species, although significant differences in abundance were apparent for some individual ant species. Except for tree-nesting Podomyrma adelaidae and Myrmecorhynchus sp. nr emeryi, the fauna was dominated by ground-nesting species, most of which appeared to forage on vegetation opportunistically. The unusually high abundance and diversity of the canopy ant fauna are attributed to the close proximity of the mallee canopy to the ground, coupled with an exceptionally rich ground ant fauna.

Ctenarytaina bipartita sp.n., associated with Eucalyptus kitsoniana and E. viminalis, is described from the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria. It differs from other described Ctenarytaina species in the paramere which bears a small posterior lobe. Taxonomically relevant morphological details are illustrated and the species is diagnosed from other eucalypt inhabiting congeners. Information on the biology is also given. C. bipartita has the po-tential to become an exported pest species to countries with significant eucalypt plantations.

Eucalyptus globulus Labill. is native to southeastern Australia and is the most important temperate hardwood plantation species in the world. It consists of four subspecies that are morphologically and geographically distinct but that are linked by morphologically and geographically intermediate populations. The Jeeralang provenance, an intermediate population from southeastern Victoria, is an important source of seed for plantations and genetic material for breeding programs because of its superior growth and wood density. To determine the genetic affinities of this provenance, 154 trees from three subspecies and the Jeeralang provenance were sampled. Analysis of 12 morphological characters verified that the Jeeralang provenance is intermediate between subspecies bicostata (Maiden, Blakely, & J. Simm.) Kirkpatr., globulus and pseudoglobulus (Naudin ex Maiden) Kirkpatr., with individuals having closest affinities to either ssp. globulus or ssp. bicostata. However, eight microsatellite loci showed that the Jeeralang provenance has greater affinities to Victorian ssp. globulus to which it is geographically closest. In contrast, Tasmanian and Victorian ssp. globulus are morphologically similar yet appear to be distinct at the molecular level. This study emphasizes the importance of using traits that are unlikely to be influenced by selection when determining the origin and affinities of populations.

Changes in vegetation structure in a long-unburnt (> 115 years) woodland at Ocean Grove, Victoria, were assessed by comparing density data collected in 1971 by Withers and Ashton (1977) with comparable data from 1996. The changes in structure outlined by Withers and Ashton (1977) continued to operate over the 25 year period, namely, a dramatic increase in the density of Allocasuarina littoralis (Salisb.) L.A.S.Johnson, and a continued decline in the once-dominant eucalypts, especially Eucalyptus ovata Labill. The density of A. littoralis increased from 911 trees ha–1 in 1971 to 3565 trees ha–1 in 1996. Most of the surviving E. ovata displayed extensive crown dieback, and appear likely to die in the near future. Many eucalypt seedlings which were planted into burnt and unburnt experimental plots in 1971 were still alive in 1996, but most were less than 0.5 m tall and suppressed by tall regrowth of A. littoralis and Acacia pycnantha Benth. In the continued absence of fire and other disturbances, it is predicted that A. littoralis will continue to dominate the reserve, leading to further declines in eucalypts. It appears unlikely that a single fire will prevent A. littoralis dominance, and frequent burning at short intervals may be required to reinstate an open woodland structure.

The anatomy is described of denticulate leaf margins in Eucalyptus denticulata, E. quadrangulata, E. incrassata and E. laevopinea. The leaves had been collected from trees growing in sites in Victoria or New South Wales. Denticulations are formed by individual secondary meristems, initially associated with primary oil glands. Each meristem produces layers of cells containing phenolic compounds towards the outside of the leaf. The structure of the denticulations is most similar to lenticels. The presence of these leaf-margin lenticels in unrelated taxa such as E. incrassata and E. laevopinea indicates that they have evolved more than once; however, they are a possible synapomorphy uniting E. denticulata and E. quadrangulata as sister taxa. They may function in defence against herbivores.

La mayoría de las plantaciones de Eucalyptus han sido establecidas en la región templada de Australia (Australia Occidental, Australia Meridional, Victoria y Tasmania). Eucalyptus globulus es la principal especie en el área, con casi todas las plantaciones bajo el sistema de rotación corta para la producción de pulpa. En Tasmania y en Victoria, tal como en Chile, E. nitens ha sido utilizado como un sustituto de E. globulus, particularmente donde las bajas temperaturas son una limitante para esta última especie. La creciente reserva de bosques naturales, que han sido la fuente del tradicional recurso de la madera aserrada, ha despertado el interés en los productos de madera sólida de estas nuevas plantaciones de Eucalyptus. Hay resistencia a la utilización de la madera solida de Eucalyptus proveniente de plantaciones, principalmente de las industrias procesadoras debido a las dudas sobre la calidad de la madera y la idoneidad de las trozas para el procesamiento. Se requerirán muchas investigaciones para despejar estos temores. Este artículo describe algunos resultados de las investigaciones sobre las propiedades madereras y silvícolas de las plantaciones de Eucalyptus en el sur de Australia, además de las actuales prioridades y actividades de investigación.

The effects of N and P fertilizers applied to Eucalyptus globulus Labill. at plantation establishment on basic density, fibre length, fibre coarseness, predicted pulp yield, and N and P concentration in the wood were examined by sampling four fertilizer factorial trials: three in Victoria and one in Western Australia. Treatments sampled were control, maximum levels of N and P by themselves and combined. Growth responses varied across sites with significant growth responses at the Victorian sites but no response at the Western Australian site. An interaction was suggested between rainfall and the effects of the fertilizer; wood properties at the drier sites were detrimentally affected by fertilizer but there was little effect at the wetter sites. On the two drier sites, application of both N and P, alone or in combination, resulted in changes in density, shorter fibres, and slightly lower predicted pulp yield. Addition of both N and P increased the levels of these nutrients in the wood at the three Victorian sites. Changes occurred in wood properties in the absence of growth responses to the applied fertilizer indicating that these changes were not induced by changing tree growth rate.

Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [279]-287) This thesis examines the growth ring structure of Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnhardt and investigates links between ring features and the climatic conditions under which growth took place. Samples of E. camaldulensis from the Barmah Forest (near the River Murray in northern Victoria) were used in the study. E. camaldulensis growth is linked to periodic flooding, and the Barmah Forest contains sites that are frequently flooded. Wood samples were obtained from sites subject to different average flooding frequencies. Trees used in the study grew out of natural regeneration in the 1920's and 1930's and from regeneration trials in the early 1960's. Initial investigation of E. camaldulensis samples revealed ring-like features that were able to be traced on samples by eye. Microscopic investigation showed that there existed considerable variations in the properties of individual rings at different positions on the samples, and that the boundaries between rings were often indistinct. Further examination of E. camaldulensis microstructure was performed on samples from two trees that grew on sites with significantly different flooding regimes. These samples possessed features that formed rings, with rings being successfully matched between samples taken from different heights in the trees. As the complex microstructure of E. camaldulensis did not lend itself to standard dendroclimatological techniques, methods were developed to facilitate the comparison and matching of rings. These methods were also used in the successful matching of ring patterns with the output from a simple climate-based tree growth model. Two sets of E. camaldulensis samples (BS1, with 33 samples, and BS2, with 39 samples) were studied to assess the level of individual variability in ring patterns, and to provide a representative ring pattern for climate comparison. Following the development of methods for identifying samples with similar ring patterns, a subset of similar samples was selected from the BS1 set. A member of this subset was selected to provide a ring-width pattern upon which a representative pattern of ring features for BS1 was based. The rings of the BS2 samples possessed poorer ring definition than the BS1 samples and provided no new or different information. Consequently, the representative ring pattern for BS1 was used in a dendroclimatological investigation for the site. The ring pattern was matched with the output from two tree growth event models. Although rings were matched with growth events over a 27 year period, the high variability of individual ring features prevented matching of particular types of ring features with particular types of climatic events. An investigation of numerical methods for matching ring patterns with ring or growth event patterns, and for identifying samples with similar ring patterns, was performed using signal smoothing and filtering techniques and a dynamic time-warping procedure. Ring matching and identification of similar ring patterns was found to be most successful on samples where the ring patterns, expressed as continuous signals, had similar mean and amplitude values. The techniques were unsuccessful in the matching of signals of different form, such as continuous ring pattern signals and discontinuous growth event signals.

Eucalyptus microcarpa Maiden (Grey Box) is a common and widespread woodland and open forest in south-eastern Australia. In Victoria, it features prominently in woodlands throughout the southern, central and northern plains environments, and also in the box-ironbark forests of the Great Dividing Range. Temperate grassy woodlands have been extensively modified since European settlement of Victoria and consequently the native biodiversity associated with them has undergone a dramatic decline. Paramount to this decline has been the landscape-scale reduction in tree cover associated with agricultural clearing, which in some regions approaches 95% or pre-European extent. Similar to most other woodland tree species, E. microcarpa is today restricted to small remnant patches or relict individuals within agricultural landscapes where extensive stands once occurred.

There is potential to increase productivity from the regrowth forests of East Gippsland, Victoria by investing in more intensive silviculture. A review of literature shows that early spacing of selected stands can increase merchantable volume and decrease rotation lengths which could then increase annual yields and/ or alleviate the pressure to harvest forests with high conservation values. This sub-thesis investigates three early spacing technologies used to space nine-year-old Eucalyptus sieberi in the Cann River Forest District. The three spacing treatments included a non-selective spacing using a mechanical slasher and two treatments that removed trees using a combination of non-selective spacing with either a stem injection of herbicide or a clearing saw that physically removed trees. All treatments were compared to an unspaced control. Stocking and basal area reductions between treatments were found to be different post-treatment in 1992. This was largely due to the proportion of area selectively spaced with the mechanical slasher. There was also natural variation in stocking in the stand, however this could not be quantified due to a lack of replication across treatments. Growth over two years was analysed using Restricted Maximum Likelihood (REML) based on a Mixed Model for unbalanced data. There was a significant (p