F 0 R E s T F 0 c u s
NO 28 MARCH 83 Front Cover Th e towering Pinus pinaster trees of Po rtugal which are now · growing in Western Australia were trad itionally climbed with a si ngle rope looped around the feet of the climber. In this way, seeds and scions were collected for transporting to Australi a. See " Pioneers: A Pro fi le", page 11. Photo: D.H. Perry. The Pilbara environment- dramatic bea uty.
Award for Conservator Forest Focus No. 28, March, 1983 Contents Page The Conservator of Forests in Western Australia, Mr Bruce James Beggs, was Published for Mr B. J. Beggs, Conservator of Pilbara Gardens for Functional Beauty awarded the Imperial Service Order in the Forests, Forests Department of Western by W. Edgecombe 3 Queen's New Year Honours list. Australia, SO Hayman Road, Como. The citation said in part that Mr Beggs has Pioneers: A Profile Articles in this publication may be fully by H. Bradbury 11 had a distinguished career in the public reprinted- with acknowledgement, except service of the State. His p ersonal in the case of commercial promotion contribution over some thirty years to the material, when permission must be Timber for the Future - Pine developme nt of forestry has been of obtained. by Dr F. McKinnell · 23 inestimable value. Conservator of Forests since 1972, Mr Beggs Page preparation and offset plates by Notable Trees of Perth has been most successful in bringing Gibbney's Graphics 1980. by B. White 29 forestry into the "environmental age" through active promotion of the principles Printed in Western Australia by the of multi-use management of the State's Government Printing office atiSSN 0049- forestry areas. 7320. As Conservator, he has had an active involvement in timber utilization and the Written, photographed and illustrated by promotion of a policy of integrated timber Forests Department officers. All maps are harvesting, stimulation of research into the produced by Forests Department Mapping broad aspects of land management and co Branch. ordination of research efforts. At both the Stale and National levels Mr Editor: M. R. L. Lewis, M.A. (Hans.) (Cant.) Be~gs has played a prominent role with a vanety of forestry and conservation re lated Assistant editor: H.K. Bradbury, B.A. (Murd.) organizations, and is held in the highest regard by all within this field. lan Laurance, M.L.A. Minister for Forests
2 PILBARA GARDENS FOR FUNCTIONAL BEAUTY
by Wa lly Edgecombe
Th e Pi lba ra - vast, hot, hars h, attitu des more ak in to temperate environment. A considerable subject to sudden torrential high rainfall areas. Company towns volu me of water, parti cularly at cyclonic ra ins and to extended 'have been estab lished inland to tap Cape Lambert and Dampier is used periods of drought. To the the ore deposits, and along the by industry. But in Karratha and European visitor it is a desert, yet in coast, new towns of the West other towns the majority of scheme this environment, a va ri ety of Pilbara, incl uding Karratha, have water is used by domestic vegetation fl ourishes, perfectly developed along with the iron ore consumers. Green, lush gardens adapted to the arid conditions. industry and in advance of the and lawns make Karratha's homes Here and there the land is development of Woodside and streets attractive, but this dissected by rivers that fl ood Petroleum's natural gas derosits luxury has its price in dollars and overn ight, creating deep gorges offshore. Karratha is one o the the cost to the environment. the oases of the Pilbara. Or there fastest growing towns in the State. may be bi llabongs and waterholes But the Pilbara is arid. Rainfall is that are refu ges for animals and unreli able, and although water is birds, providing water for them ava ilable for industries and and for the people who inhabit the domestic use, it is an expensive area. In these oases may be found resource to develop. Th ~ major pockets of lush palms, paperbarks companies, such as Hamersley Iron. and other plants unique to the area Pty. Ltd., and Cliffs Robe River Iron and of great botanical interest. Associates provide water at no Th ere are also the rugged ra11ges, charge to their workers, to attract such as the Hamersleys, and like fa milies to the area and provide a Mt Whaleback, Mt Tom Price and pleasant working and living others, they contain the world's richest deposits of iron ore.
Modern settlement of the Pilbara Rainfall in th e Pilbara is unreliable, ,.... sin ce the iron ore "boom" of the being brought sporadically by tropica l 1960s brought with it a new group cyclones during the late summer. Here of settlers. They arrived from the clouds of cyclone 'I an' build up overseas countries and all States of near Karratha in March 1982. Note the Australia bringing with them pipeline conneding Karratha with the landscaping and garden in g Millstream aquifer.
3 FIGURE 1 MILLSTREAM
LEGEN D D River Forest and Wood land D Millstream Palms - Heath and Sedgeland 0Spinifex
\\ Scale
0 3km
Th e answer to the problem of * redesign ing gardens using River. This area includes the Crystal wa ter supply is constant vigilance appropriate arid area plan ts Pool and the delta area with its rare to reduce unnecessary water use. and eliminating wa ter wetlands. Of special interest are landscaped demanding species, areas in towns, and especiall y Most of the area around the domestic supplies which acco unt * promoting wa ter conservation Millstream pools is destined to for over half of the water used in technology such as the use of become National Pa rk. Pr ior to the Pilbara. Studies by the Forests mulch, the use of tap timers 1976 some of the area was a timber Department and others and trick le reticulation. reserve based on the large cajeput demonstrate clea rl y that domestic tree (Me/a/euca leucadendron). consumption ca n be red uced to Millstream Water Millstrea m has become a focal less than 700 kl /annum for an point for tourism because of its ave rage domestic house and outstanding natural beauty. ga rden in the Pil ba ra. This is half The Millstream area, which the current estimated annual usage supplies wa ter to the towns of Water from Millstream is piped per household. Dampier, Karratha, Wickh am and 120 km to the coastal towns of the Point Sa mson, has unique qualities. West Pilbara. Th is la rge draw on The Fo rests Department is It has a fasc inati ng collecti on of water resources has led to concern promoting a programme of vegetation incl uding the un ique that there could be an adverse reduced ga rden wa ter use whi ch is Millstream palm (Livistona alfredii) effect on the vegetation at based on: and the date pa lm, presumably Millstream. Consequently the introduced by Afghan camel trains Public Works Department has * budgeting water use to an traversi ng the Sta te. The vegetation constructed a special bore to amount that the plants ca n and the major pools are fed by supplement spring flows in to utili ze effecti vely (preventing springs from the deep aquifer Crysta l Pool to ensure the existing over watering), which lies alongside the Fo rtescue ecosystems are maintained.
4 Because the Millstream system is now at the limit of its safe water yield, another source of water has become necessary and a new dam on the Harding River has been chosen as the solution. This dam and its associated fa cilities will cost 40 million dollars. Low-water Gardens
In 1980 the Forests Department appointed an officer to Karratha to investigate and advise on tree establishment and maintenance in the Pilbara region. As part of this programme the feasibility and costs of estab lishing low-water consuming ga rdens is being investigated in an attempt to provide householders with a viable attractive alternative to the lush high-water consuming gardens currently planted. The first low water garden was planted in October 1980 and has been monitored sin ce with some very encourag ing results. In the ensuing two year period, a number of demonstration ga rdens exhibiting a range of designs and native plants has been crea ted. The Forests Department has assumed control of the Government Nurseries at Karratha and Broome. Plants are being raised at Karratha for this programme. Arid area and Pilbara plants are being screened for suitability and most are flowering and growing bett er in gardens than in the ir natural habitat. Trees and plants are being dispatched for trial in all Pilbara towns. 4 Arid area plants were used to establi sh thi s low-water consuming garden at 8 Cowan Way, Karrath a. Of paramount importance are the concepts of strict water budgeting to avoid waste, the reduction of thirsty lawn areas and the selection of appropriate plants for landscaping.
Water Conservation
Water conservation begins with appropriate designs for towns, streets, drainage, homes and recreation areas. Th e extreme heat
Trickle irrigation system in use at 49 Padbury Way Karratha. Wastage of water by run-off and excess watering is reduced by this method. FIGURE 2 COST OF ESTABLISHING A LOW-WATER GARDEN
\. Based on ex perience in Karrath a, the following could be a guide to costs once a plan is prepared. Costs are estimated at 1982 pri ces if the tenant is prepa red to assist with landscaping.
TOTAL COST $1,550 ~ ~ ~ ~ .~ $500 $250 $300 $500 To d eeplj, cultivate soil, level Cost of 100 plants at Incidentals- pav ing and mou d to desired reticulation $3 each slabs, stormwa ter pipe, formation with backhoe, mulch incorporate loam, sludge or other organic matter to vegetable and fruit tree areas, plus stones and/or sleepers for feature work.
NOTE - Tenant to plant trees and shrubs, install reticulation and spread mulch. "" - If a simple design is required the costs would be greatly reduced. - M ost new houses need a shad y pergola in the North-west. Trees sta rt to provide shade after about 5 yea rs. A pergola kit p lus brick paving would cost about $1,200.
FIGURE 3 WATER USAGE IN A LOW-WATER GARDEN
Trees- shade, fruit (10 @ Sk l /annum) 1kllweek or 52kl/annum Wa ter use inside house 4kL/ week or The house hold with the first 208kL/ year low-water garden in Kar ratha has two adu lts and four children and the garden Native shrubs features a lawn that is quite (100 @ 1.3kl/annum) small, requiring SOmm/week 2.5kl/week or of reti culation wa tering. The 130k llyear vegetable ga rden is seasonal, but is averaged out at SOmm/ week also. Na tive shrubs, once established, are given an average weekly watering of 25 1itres (1.3 kL/annum). Trees, once established, will be allocated 100 lit res per week. The water Vegetable ga rden 20m2 direct ly applied may be less (2.5l TOTAL USAGE 11.5kL/week or 598kL/year 6 and aridity of the Pilbara can be partially ameliorated through the FIGURE4 careful design and layout of homes and gardens. Verandahs and patios may be extended to provide outdoor living areas and initial sh ade while trees develop. And most importantly, water from PlANT LIST rainfall should be collected from species no. the roofs and directed onto th e shrubs/ground covers garden instead of being wa sted as a Abutilon amplum 1 run-off down into the streets. b Acacia bive nosa (Existing) 1 c Acacia cow Ieana 5 Passive water harvesting could d Acacia holosericea 5 provide water for sel ected plants e Acacia translucens 18 for a considerable time. f Acacia tumid a 4 g Capparis spinosa 5 Practical gardening for the arid h Cassia artemisioides 2 areas involves the selection of i Cassia hamers leyensis 7 native shrubs and plants that . Cassia helmsii 3 consume far less water than kCassia nemophila 2 introduced plants, but which I Cassia o ligophylla 2 nevertheless provide a beautiful m Cassia pruinosa 5 n Clerodendron tomentosa 1 floral display. Plants and advice o Crotalaria novae about pl antings are available at the hollandiae 1 Forests Department nurse ry. Soil p Eremophila glabra 6 structure should be improved and q Eremophila longifolia 1 mulching i echniques introduced r Eremophila maculata 7 to hold water. Covering the soil s Go ssypium sturtianum 3 with stones or shredded vegetation t lpomaea costata 2 after planting will further reduce u lpomaea muellerii 1 water loss from the garden. Finally, Rulingia kempea na 1 designing the garden for a rigid trees · water budget depends on A Acacia aneura 1 minimum wastage. A trickle 8 Acacia coriacea 2 irrigation system prevents excess C Brachychiton gregorii 2 water loss, as does the introduction D Eucalyptus coolabah 2 of timers on all water outlets into E Eucalyptus leucophloia 1 the garden. F Eucalyptus social is 1 G Eucalyptus striaticalyx 5 H Eu calyptus torquata 1 Handy Hints I Pittosporum phylliraeoides 1 There are many factors involved in a su ccessful garden but some of these are particularly important in the dry north-west. Often householders have little idea of Forests Department site plan of the fi rs t low-water garden project in Karratha. how much water a garden needs. Over watering is as wasteful as . forgetting to turn off the tap. Many trees and shrubs are best watered once a week or less. What small DOMESTIC WATER USE areas of the garden are retained for law n should be watered only twice weekly and perhaps three times during extra hot spells. PER WEEK (kl) PER YEAR (kl) CATEGORY Householders should read their OF WATER USE water meters and plan water use to keep within the low annual budget of 600kllannum. As a guide for ave rage north-west house holds 9.6-14.4 500-750 low the following categories ca n be suggested (right). 14.5-19.2 750-1000 high 19.3 - 28.8 1000 - 1500 very high 28.9 plus 1500 plus wasteful 7 Low-water garden at 8 Cowan W ay Karratha in 1980 and six m onths later (right). Native shrubs make a shady pathway in little time. The striking bea uty of th e local flora has only recently been 'discovered' by res idents of the Pilbara. Here Crcvillca wickhamii (above left), Ercmophila maw/at a (above right) and Acacia trans /u cens are shown in full bloom. ~ E. cama/du/ensis, or river gum, grows along creek beds and water ho les througho ut the Pilbara. It has been planted as a street tree in Karrat ha and o ther towns in the Pil ba ra, but is t generally u nsuitable as it grows too ~~~~~ ~ large and is a haza rd during cyclones. r.; ~ ;E"' "'""----...... -"'---'--' ;: 8 A low-water garden does not mean a low-maintenance garden, neither does it mean that exotic plants should be totally excluded. Plants of similar water-consuming ca pacity should be grouped together. High-water consuming plants can be planted in close Millstream is an oasis and water supply proximity to lawn areas where for the W est Pilbara. These cajeput water applica tions are more trees (Me/a/euca leucad endron) & frequent. Small areas may be Millstream Palms (Livistona alfredii) are included in this manner where part of the unique environm ent, worth va riety is desirable. Fertilizing and ~p~re~s~e~r v~in~g~·~c~. w~in ~fie~ld~· ------~,.. pruning not o nly improves the growth of exotic plants and vegetables, but also improves the growth of native plants. Investment Many trees of the Pilbara, if planted in the towns, are excellent for shade and An invest ment in a low-water y shelter and require little water. ga rden ca n provide just as much ~ucalyp tus asp era beauty and interest as its luxurian t water consuming counterpart, and will soon pay for itself in reduced water bills. A low-water consuming household using 700 kl /annum would cost the nouseholder $138 at 1982 water prices. In comparison a high-water consuming household using 2000 kl/annum costs the ho useholder $1008. Acacia coriacea. Note the attractive ,... weeping habit of this tree growing i n Sa mpson Way, Karratha. y PIONEER It was 1919, and early spring in the karri country - a sited at the junction of several rail lines from places time when the forest drips with misty rain, and the like Dean mill and Jardee and Pemberton further to dank scent of wattle and bossiaea mingles with the the south. On one side of the main street was the ever-present smoke from wood stoves and sawdust railway station from where the felled giants lurched piles. Wood was the mainstay then -the "never off down the track in hundreds of saw n sections to ending" source of most trade and employment in the capital and the ports. Opposite was the hotel the south-west. Ex-servicemen queued at scattered where other felled "giants" lurched through swing mill offices around the south wanting work, and doors after too much beer and too many days in the getting it. Manjimup, although quite small, was the bush, or the war that had ended the year before- or centre of the timber trade in this region, and was both. 11 \ ~~w~======~~~~ ( - The Training of Foresters by C. E. Lane-Poole first Conservator of Forests. Published 1921 ... In every one of the S tates of Australia there is a vast quantity of work to be accomplished in repairing the damage done by generations of exploitation and in protecting and extending the forested areas so that they shall remain permanent assets. Btl/ without men who have had some special training /or the work, it is useless to entertain hopes for the accomplishment of the task. So necessary is this /raining that in every State arrange ments have either been made or are in progress fo r imparting the necessary knowledge to those who may enter a forest school as apprentices, with a view of reaching higher grades. Forestry as a life calling for youth offers many attractions. Almost the whole of the work is in the open air and under conditions emine ntly suited to physical and m ental health ... The course of ins/ ruction for apprentices a/ the school will extend over a period of four years and the following outline furnishes some idea of the scope and nature of the training:- First Year - The successful applicants will proceed to the Forest School for A pprentices. Subjects for the first year:- 1. Elementary mathematics. 2. Geology and Physiography. 3. Botany (elementary). 4. Entomology. While engaged in practical work in the field printed lectures will be forwarded to the apprentices fortnightly in the subjects set out for each year. Second Year - In the second year the apprentices will return to the school for two months' training. On returning to practical work in the bush, the boys will be placed, as far as possible, in localities where they will receive training in nt1rsery and plantation work. The subjects to be studied during the second year are:· 1. Soils. 2. Botany -systematic and economic. 3. Surveying. 4. Forestry· History and Value. Third Year -In March of the third year the apprentices will return to the school for a further two months' instruction. On returning to the bush the apprentices will, where possible, be employed in classification and working plan survey work. Subjects for third year:- 1. Sylviculture (inclu ding nursery work). 2. Mensuration. 3. Valuation. 4. Protection. During the fourth year the apprentice will be attached to a district in order to learn, under the District Forest Officer, the whole of the routine work, including clerical work, general work and timber inspection. He will be required to submit independent reports on matters receiving consideration in the district. Opportunities will be given for visiting various mills and wood-working industries and provision made for continuous e mployment in at least one sawmill. Subjects for fourth year:- 1. Forest Management and Working Plans. 2. Utilization. 3. Transport and forest engineering. 4. Forest Po licy. Rate of Pay -Subject to an apprentice passing the necessary examination, the following rates of pay will apply:· First Year 12s. 6d. plus 18s. s ubsistence a llowance per week. Second Year 17s. 6d. plus IBs. subsistence allowance per week. Third Yew· 22s. 6d. plus IBs. subsistence allowance per week. Fourth Yeor 30s. Od. plus /8s. subsistence allowance per week. 12 Th e five ori ginal apprentices at th e Ludlow Forestry School, were, from left to right, D.H. Perry, W.A. Ross, C. V. Kinsell The last goods tra in to " Watch it Dick! ", someone En gland. Horses were his father's Pemberton steamed its way o~t of shouted, and the young man entire life, and when the motor ca r Manjimup and into the jumped out of hi s reveri e to dive at was introduced to the estate by his surrounding forest. Several men sat the nea rest swag. It had ca ught Lordship, he had declined the offer awkwardly in an open truck near alight from the rain of red-hot to become chief mechanic and th e front of the train, hunched up charcoal spurting out from the driver, electing instead to try his with the swags, portmanteaux and engine as it steamed uphill. Even luck in Australia working still with ca mping gear o the tea m who their clothes would catch alight, the beloved horses. Out in would be working in the fo rest of but there was nothing else for it W estern Australia his son the Dombakup Brook and the the lo ng wa lk out to the Humphrey, later ca lled " Dick" in Shannon an d Gardner basins. They Dombakup started tomorrow early. this land of nick-names, was weren't loggers, but foresters, and Dick sett led back in his p lace, back popular, even as a "poor little would be ca mping fo r eight to the engine, hat pulled down, Pommie boy", was sprightly of months in the uncut karri flannel shirt covered by a heavy mind and build, and quite classifying the quan tity and quality jersey, and boots and dungarees determined. He would be a farmer of timber in the reg ion to the south protecting his feet and legs from he told his pa rents, when he left and east of Pemberton. There was th e co ld and the as h. primary school at fourteen . But when no European settlement in the the advertisement for apprentices country due south of Pemberton Dick Perry, the youngest with the Department for Woods and th en, except the M oon family on member of the tea m, was Forests appeared in the paper, his the Dombakup and, of course, the seventeen at the time, had been in parents urged him to apply. Brock mans o n the W arren nearer Australia seven years and w as the to the town, who had been driving eldest of four child ren. His father Security they sa id, w as very ca ttle to the coast every summer had been the head coachman on a important and in 1917 with so many for yea rs. large estate in the south of people looking for work, the 13 opportunity for a paid the real amount of timber along Lane-Poole was fighting to get apprenticeship was too good to this area near the Blackwood River. control of all the timber cutting miss. Out of 60 or 70 lads Jack He had spent most of 1919 in the both here and in the north. The Thomson and Dick Perry were camps along the Blackwood, his twenty-five-yea r long concessions chosen by C. E. Lane-Poole, later to first assignment in the bush. of large tracts of forest to the become the first Conserva tor of timber companies were Forests. They could ride well and It had been exciting alright. unregulated, and had to be knew how to ca re for horses, and Forester Gordon Parkes had met changed. Th e extent of the jarrah these skills they were soon to him at the Ship I nne at Busselton, forest was actually unknown, discover, were vital. .. and they had ridden all that day despite the exaggerated estimates down the )albarragup Road to the of the timber harvesters. That we'd The train jerked around a corner, river, only to discover that the rest never run out of jarrah was the and Dick glanced up at the of the team had moved on. So they common belief, and the wastage of looming karri, overwhelmed by his ca mped the night then and there, fine timber enormous. first view of some of the tallest wrapped in grey wool army-issue trees on Eart h. Th e sun had come blankets, with o nly a fire and a The Blackwood River, even out and filtered through the morsel of food between them. And twenty miles from the mouth was glistening leaves down through the then late in the night the howling fresh then, drinkable, and teeming dense, pungent understorey an d had started, and eyes ringed the with life, providing a diet of fresh onto the ri ch red loam of the forest dying fire, and young Dick woke marron to the foresters. Evidence floor. He was very observa nt, up alarmed. of aboriginal occupation of the training himse lf to see many parts "Don't worry, Dick", Gordon area was sti ll easily seen, and like of the living forest in all its detail, had sa id, "just dingoes. Th ey'll do them, the men of the cla ss ifica tion committing it to memory. In the you no harm" . ca mps hunted the abundant game jarrah forest of the Su nkland he in the area. Kangaroos were a had done this, chain by chain, acre They were good days in the bush source of fresh meat for the camp, by acre, mile by mile, observing the then, those days in the Sunkland. relieving the poor diet of salt beef world around him, noting the There was no dieback, and much and pork brought in from the condition of the resource, judging of the forest hadn't yet been exploited. The timber industry was very labour intensive, providing employment for returned servicemen after the first World War. Note the size of this huge karri log. 14 nearest town every week. Th e eight-man team was working through the Sunkland forest for most of the year, then was transferred sou th to karri country. Dick worked in the deep south fo r the next eight mo nths, into autumn of 1920. Many incidents coloured tbe team's progress, and the work w·as slow, because, unlike the jarrah forest, the karri was difficult topenetrate. Carts would bog down or even tip over, strea ms and rivers would have to be crossed and re-crossed by swimming and wading, vital provisions such as suga r and tobacco wou ld be unavailable from Pemberton, and even the cook " disappeared" o ne day, 50 miles out of Pemberton. An excellent cook but an alco holi c like others who had returned from the war, he was discovered later back at the The first Forests Department head office picnic was held at Point Walter, Perth ir, 1922. Di ck Perry is in the ba ck row at the left, and th e yo ung , second Conserva tor, hotel. But the work did progress, Mr. S.L. Kessell is seated on the ground, third from th e right. forming in Dick Perry's mind a respect and love for the living forest, and his work in it. His first years of forestry were the first yea rs of the new Forests Department established in 1919. During these yea rs Lane-Poole was to res ign in protest at the extension of the old give-away timber concessions w hich were virtually exempt from the provisions of the new Forests Act. This stimulated a Royal Commission of Enquiry into fo restry in Western Austra lia. Along with other apprentices young Dick was trained in all aspects of practi ca l forestry, but most importantly, he was taught how to plant and grow trees. Other people would be cutting them down, but he would be planting them . ... "Senho r Perry, this way", sa id Sen hor Amoral, hurrying his way through the narrow streets of the beautiful medieva l town of Leiria in Portugal. It was 1965, and Dick Perry, now 63 yea rs o ld, was very much involved with growing trees. He followed the Portuguese forester who was in charge of the forest of Leiria. Dick and his wife, A young Dick Perry does the washing at the forestry topo&raphi ca l survey camp n e~ r Mundaring Weir in 1923. Throughout the m any years of h1s career he camped 111 th1s Katharin e, had been in Portugal for manner until horses were su perseded by motor vehicles. Note the bush pole . two years. This was their last spring construction of the tents, the sawn-off black boy used as a table, and the sturdy basm in this country. stand. 19 "Manuel, he is in here, the would take using the cumbersome through th e maze of trunks on the prison" , said Snr Amoral, as they climbing ladders and irons. Even at watch for the perfect tree, in rounded the white-washed stone 63, Dick Perry was fit eno ugh to genetic terms, the " plus wall of the gaol. Th e two foresters climb up to a dozen trees a day, phenotype". O ut o f eve ry quarter entered the ga teway and the iron but this was not eno ugh. Th e Perrys of million trees that they looked at doors were immediately cl anged were coming to the end of their only one was good eno ugh to shut behind them. Th e wa rden collecting programme and still had provide the grafts for future pine rose to meet them, then Snr many seeds and scions to collect. plantatio ns in Western Austra lia. Amo ral began the long process of No-one else could cl imb trees like Furthermore, they could only persuasion to get M anuel out of M anuel, and witho ut his help and co llect the growing ti ps in spri ng, pri so n, for this young peasa nt boy ability they would never have so M anuel's immediate help was was vital to the Perrys' work in the ga thered the buds fo r grafting, essential. Pinus pinaster forest of Leiri a. This cones for seed and pollen of 85 boy was one of the last people in trees, that fin ally reached Australia. " Yes, we may take him, Senhor Po rtuga l to have been taught the Th e Perrys would wa lk miles Perry", sa id Snr Amo ral eventually, traditional way of climbing the through this huge forest in sea rch after painstakingly expl aining to towering, straight pine trees. With of the particular trees that would the wa rden the impo rtance o f just a single rope looped around provide perfect breeding stock for M anuel to the internatio nal project his feet in a fi gure of eight, the lad the tree-breeding programme now in hand. " But you are charged would almost run up the trunk being conducted at home in the with the respo nsibility o f picking reaching the top of the tree a nursery at Wanneroo. Dick and him up from the gaol and bringing hundred feet from the ground in Kath wo uld establish their him back every night". less than half the time that Dick bearings, and march off down The Portuguese have used maritime or pinaster pine in ship b uilding for centuries. Here the villagers haul the longboat in after a fishing expedition. The hull ;mel oars Y are all made of pinaster. The next day Dick and Kath drove to the prison in their Volkswagen, with the packed lunch of cheese, bread, wine and fruit, prepared for them by the three girls at the boarding house in Marinha Grande where they were staying. Marinha Grande and many of the other towns and villages that they had see n, was high-wa lled and colourful, and under the Mediterranean sunshine shone like a new pin. Th ey drove out of this village and into the narrow streets of nearby Leiria, pass ing the neat stone houses with gay geraniums peeping out from flower pots and window boxes. Like the an cient forest, everything in the town of Leiria was very neat and clean and ordered -the pavements swept, the centuries-old fountains flowing cleanly. Centuries of civilization had developed in the Portugu ese a respect for all aspects of their culture, both man-made and natu raJ. Forests there were far from their wild state, yet so well Dick and Manuel in the Pinus pinaster forest of Leiria sort through the growing tips, A managed and cared for by every or scions, collec1ed by Manuel from the top of the towering pine trees. one, that the supply of wood was assured. All products of the forest were used in sensible amounts, and exploited in their correct order. Res in for example was co llected from the ba se of the biggest and hea lthiest trees three years before they were felled. Firewood was collected methodica lly by villagers w hose ancestors 600 years before had been granted the right by King Dennis to co llect the dead or pruned branches or other fallen debris. And in time the final crop of mature trees would be cut to supply the Portuguese with the timber that made their fishing vessels, their housing frames, their furniture. Th e areas of forest harvested would be sown aga in by broadcast seeding. Although this traditional method of seed ing was slow, the forest re-grew, and a continuing yield of wood wa s Kath Perry assisted in finding, provided. measuring and marking the " plus At the prison ga tes Manuel phenotype" trees in Leiria. O nly one in appeared wearing the o ld cloth every 250 000 that the Perrys looked at trouse rs and threa d-bare shirt that was good enough to provide stock for the Perrys had noticed the spring Western Austra li a. before.The shirt fitted snugly and was to become more ragged over the ensuing weeks during the intensive climbing programme. If Kath hadn't made the boy a tough ca nvas vest he would eventually A Pinus pinaster " plus phenotype" have been sliding down the rough showing its straight trunk and evenly pinaster bark on his bare skin. branching canopy. 21 After h is retirement in 1967, Dick Perry became more acti vely interested in term ites, and his study took him into the arid regions of Western Austra li il. Always at horn e in the bush, he is pictured here waiting for the billy to boil. Emp loyed in 1917 Mr Dick Perry worked for fifty years in the Fo rests Department through the formative yea rs of forestry in Western Australia. The programme was winding up and the Perrys worked hard to record all field data and package the sa mples fo r air freighting o ut of Li sbon. O f all the forest se rvices in Australia and New Zealand that were se nt the scions, o nly the W estern Australian Fo rests Department had success at grafting and propaga ting the Po rtuguese stock. Dick Perry is an old ma n now and one of his grea test pleasures is to visit the plantations north of Perth at Gnangara and Yanchep and observe the beautiful straight, sometimes perfect fo rm of the trees growing there. He selected the parents of them all. In 1983, you may .see Dick Perry, hea lthy and busy. He may be cycl in g around Rottnest Island observing the reclamatio n of the sand dunes, or collecting firewood fro m the forest in his utility, or microscope in his study, surro unded "But remember , I'm nothing setting out in the brand new ca r for by books - on ento mology, poetry, special," he says. "We're all a trip in the country. O r there'll be fo restry, botany, history, genetics, p ioneers still in Western Austra lia a knock at the door of his and so on. The diari es of Ernest Giles you know". Perth home, and someone will and Jo hn Forrest, pio neers and Helen Bradbury arrive with a bucket of termites for explo rers, are near one end. He and Dick to identify. Over the years, Kath, Dick cas ually mentions, Dick Perry has become one of recently followed part of the actua l Western Australia's leading route taken by Giles in his attempt to authorities on termites, has cross Australia. Dick descri bes the collaborated in the w riting of a book thrill of fo llowing the explorer, of on these interesting insects, and finding o ne of the party s ca irns. His advises o n their habits and animated, expansive and often characteristics. You may even find humo ro us conversa tio n flows on, him, the boy whose formal exploring many subjects, touched educatio n stopped two yea rs short of with the wisdom of 80 years of the junior certifica te, bent ove r his lea rning. 22 by Dr Frank M e Kinnell In these" high technology" days of of timber products to enable the Timber Production space shuttles and optical fibres, State to be more or less se lf why do we continue to use an old sufficient. fashioned " soft techno logy" Since about 1900 the timber material like timber? We use it All the types of trees that occur industry has been a major beca use we appreciate its versatility naturally in Western Australia in economic fo rce in the south-west and ease of use as a construction sufficient quantity to be of use for of the State. In the early days the material and its beauty for timber are euca lypts. That is, their forest resou rce must have seemed decoration in panelling or timber is of the type known as limitless and the industry was seen furniture. Timber is a renewable hardwood. In other parts of the as one of the most important wa ys resource which is readily world the main timber resource is of developing the south-west. recyclable and biodegradable. It normally conifers, or softwoods. Since then, about half the area of has a very low energy requirement for its production, unlike its main Th ere are many timber uses for good quality forest has been lost to .agriculture and today only about competitors (concrete, steel and which hardwoods are either not two million hectares have been set aluminium) and its production and suited at all, or are wastefully aside as State forest. Only 10 per processing involve very little employed. For example, it is cent ?f this area is covered by fast atmospheric pollution. wasteful to use high quality furniture grade jarrah timber for growmg trees like karri or pine. In Western Australia there are two making fruit cases, yet this did Most State forest ca rries jarrah basic reasons why we are planting happen for manr yea rs. It is a lo ng which is very slow growing. Th is pine trees - to provide a type of held principle o good forest combination of sma ll area and slow timber for local uses that our management that a commercial growth over the majority of the natural timbers are unsuited to, timber should be d irected to the forest means that our timber and to provide a sufficient resource hi ~ h es t quality use for which it is resource is inadequate for our SUited. needs in the future. 23 Forest Manageme nt STATE & PRIVATE PINE FORESTS ~ O ur forests are m anaged fo r a IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA va riety of uses, as there are many other demands on them besides . the productio n of wood. They "~-·~ provide the water catchment area Wanneroo . \ fo r dams serving the metropolitan Scale 0 40 80 km and south-west areas and they t I I I I ensure that the water is clea r and of low sa linity. The forests are also used for recrea tion, for the preservatio n of representative sa m ples of o ur unique flora and fauna an d the pro tection of the visual qualities of the landscape. Some parts of the forest are used Southern Ocean for m ining operations fo r the production of bauxite, coal, tin and ilmenite. A considerable area of forest has also been clea red for powerlines, roads and dams. A ll these things mea n that altho ugh LEGEND we have some two millio n hectares of State forest, o nly about half of State Forest (hardwood) c:J that area ca n be used primarily for Pinaster Forest • wood productio n. In order that we Radiata Forest • ca n set as ide some fo rest to preserve scenic vistas and examples of Private Pine Forest • natural and undisturbed Donnybrook Sunkland vegetatio n, we must ma nage the rem aining fo rest intensive ly to max imize its w ood productio n and meet consumer demand. O ne of the metho ds used to grow sawlogs faster is to p lant p in es, w hich we are able to grow 20 or 30 times faster than jarrah forest. Pin es ca n produce lo gs suitable for sawmilling in 30 years, w hereas Indian Ocean jarrah takes 150-300 yea rs to mature. Another method of growing sawlogs faster is to convert pa rt of our native jarrah and karri forest to m aintaining much needed jobs in what the forester ca lls a managed It is sometimes argued that we rural areas. forest. In a prop erly m anaged should not be too concerned at forest the yield of timber ca n be this and that we ca n always import It should also be remembered that maintained fo reve r. This is ca lled the timber we need from it is not poss ible to crea te a forest sustained yield. Unfortunately, it so mewhere else. However, overnight. To meet a forseen gap in w ill take us many, many yea rs to foresters maintain that we should timber ava ilability 30 yea rs hence it achieve that goa l in o ur na tive aim to be mo re or less se lf is necessary to plant.today. forests, and in order to achieve it, sufficient in timber products as it is we must drastica lly reduce the expensive to transport timber to If after several years of planting, saw log cut in these forests over the Western Australia an d future new evidence comes to hand to next 30-60 years. overseas supplies are uncertain. suggest that the projected dem and Also we can grow the timber here w ill be less than forecast, it is easy In o rder to remain more or less mo re cheaply than it can be to adjust the rate of planting o r se lf-sufficient in sawn timber imported under most normal cease planting altogether. products, it is intended to offset circumstances, and growing an d Unfortunately it is impossible to this decline in hardwood supplies p rocessing timber in W estern remedy the opposite situation of with Western Australian grown Australia is a va luable way o f " too little and too late" . pine. 24 Figure 6 shows the est imated FIGURE 6 o utput of hardwood and softwood Estimated sawlog supplies in Western Australia 1980- 2050 (pine) in Western Australia over the next 70 yea rs, equivalent to the lifeti me span of a child born today. Estimated total 1 1 W.A. timber It ca n be seen that the hardwood 1200 ,/ supply. output falls off rapidly over the ,-, ...... ,------""'" next 30 years, then levels off for a ~-.; I time, and then later begins to rise I again as our regenerated 1000 ,..- / ·-·- ·-·-· -·-·-Estimated pine hardwood forests mature. To ,.,.- - production based / ..,./ on a continuing maintain the total estimated M~ I I ,-" adequate level requirement for sawn timber, the E , __ _ , / of pine planting. pine output rises rapidly over the gaoo ' I 0 / next 30 years and this illustrates the ~ / need for our pine planting 0 / programme. -4 I ~ 600 >- / C) Pine Forests in 0 ..J ~ 400 Western Australia < (/) Estimated W.A . hardwood Two species of pine are planted in I production at Western Australia. Th ey are 200 / present log monterey pine or radiata pine ./ standard and (Pinus radiata), which comes from a present market small area along the coast of ·- ·""""' requirements . Ca lifornia, and maritime pine or 1980~-- 85------90 95 2000 5 10 15 --20 ------25 30 35 40 45 2050 pinaster pine (Pinus pinaster), YEAR which comes originally from the Mediterranean area. Most pinaster • No te : hardwood production rises again as regenerated forest pine in Western Australia uses grows to millable size . stock that ca me originally from the forest of Leiria in Portugal. Rad iata pine grows much faster than pinaster and is preferred for that reason, but the pin aster will tolerate much poorer and drier soils, so we use both species here Y Watering points for fire fighting are maintained throughout the forests. on the soils that are most suitable fo r them. It is also desirable to have more than o ne species of pine in case a disease or insect problem were to arise with either species at some time in the future. This is ca lled spread ing the biologica l risk. There are a large number of small areas of pine forest in the south west, o ften w here the original forest has been killed by dieback disease. Th ese small areas are uneconomic to manage and are bein g replace d gradually by euca lypts that are r es i ~ t a nt to the disease. Efficient forest management for wood production requires that th e pines be planted in large contiguous areas. Most pine plantings in Western Aust ralia now take place on the coastal plain 25 north of Perth around Yan chep and Wanneroo, or south of Bu sselton on the low plateau known as the Sunkland. Other areas have been planted in the past on the coastal plain near Harvey, around the Stirling Dam and Wellington Dam and along the Blackwood Ri ver and Ba lingup Brook. By far the longest of these areas is that through the Blackwood Va lley where most plantings have taken place o n former farmland purchased by the Forests Department. There are also some privately owned forests in that region. Th e Sunkland A. Farm land in the Blackwood Va lley has been bought by the Forests Department to be planted with pines. The so ils in this area are excellent for growing Pinus radial a Because there is insufficient farm land rea dily ava ilable and because funds for land purchase are limited, the pine forest establishment programme is now concentrated in the Su nkland. This project involves the conversion of some 60 000 ha of the 283 000 ha of native forest in the Sunkland to p ines, over a period of about 30 yea rs. The project has been exa mined and approved by the Environmental Protection Authority. In this region there are large areas of soil suitab le for pines, provided that fertilizer is applied. The native forest is generally of low quality and some of it is affected by dieback disease. Conversion of parts of this original jarrah forest to pines has no significan t adver.se affect on stream sa linity. The area is also favourably located for efficient A These eigh t-year-old radiata pine have been high pruned to improve timber quality. and economic future processing of the timber. Because only some of the soils are suitable for pines, the area will eventuall y be a mosaic of pines and jarrah. This will minimize any nega tive impact on na tive fauna in the area. In fact, some native fauna, especially the kangaroos, are undergoing a population "boom" due to the ad ditional food provided by the clover used to improve the soil fertility in the early years of pine growth. ~ A skyline cable logging system is employed to thin pines in the steep country o f the Blackwood Valley. 26 Uses of Pine Timber The products we get from the pine forest are many and varied. Th e best large logs are used for the manufacture of pine venee r for w all panelling or for furniture. Th e bulk of the output from mature pine forests is sawlogs for the production of building timber of va rious types. For this purpose it is ea·sier to use than the jarrah we are used to using in Western Australia. Properly prepared pine building timber is less inclined to twist, does not shrink and is much easier to cut and nail than jarrah. Already pine timber can be seen being used in many new homes under construction. A Young pine forests also yield large Particle board, made from pine quantities of small, low quality logs thinnings, is produced at th e Dardanup that are removed from the forest to Particle Board factory. promote the growth of the best trees that are kept until they are mature. Th ese small logs are used for the production of particle board in large automated modern Clover is planted to improve soil .... factories such as the Wesfi plant fertility at the time of planting pines in near Bunbury, or they are trea ted the Su nk land. with preservative and used for fence posts and rails. Trea ted pine p osts and ra ils are often used in parks and recreation areas, as well as for farm fencing. A pine log is peeled for making veneer (bottom left ). In the future, it is possible that some of this material may be used in a paper pulp fa ctory. 'Pin e ve neer drying immediately after production. Th e veneer is popularly used for furniture and wa ll panelling. Y 27 Other Functio ns of pinaster forests hJs enabled the white tailed black cockatoo to Pine Fo rests build its populatio n to far great er levels thJ n it was before. In some A lthough the pine forests have one pine forests the native understorey main function, which is to produce shrubs are present most of the wood fo r us in the most efficient time, so that native insects and the way, they do ha ve other important small birds which feed o n them functio ns and va lues. Some pine flourish. However species of fau na fo rests, such as those on the coastal which requi.re old euca lypts, such plain north of Perth, play an as hole nest mg b1rds or animals, do important additio nal ro le in no t generally occur in pine forests. protecting the quality of some of In some areas, such as the Perth's underground wa ter Su nkland, the mosa ic of pine and supplies. jarrah forest provides a great diversity of fauna habitat. Th ese same forests are also used in some areas for horse or trail bike Another value of pine forests ri?ing, or just for wa lking. You.ng which is frequently no t pme fo rests are not too attractive appreciated is their potential for for recreation (a lthough they are generating employment. This attractive to some native an imals poten tial is of course, only fully and birds) but as the forests are rea lized when the forests are thinned and grow older they mature, as is the case in South become increasingly attractive to Austra lia, where it has been found people. that the forests will support one worker fo r every 20 hectares. Th is is Pine forests do no t have the same a much higher employment ratio range of active an imals and birds as than for the less productive native forests or for most types of ... i native forests, but they do have some species. Young pine forests agriculture. A In the pinaster pine forest at Gnangara near Perth, areas have been set aside are especially attractive to for recreation p urposes. Trail bike kanga roos. Th e presence of Exotic Trees riding is o ne o those activities. Th e pines ma y be welcomed in Green pin~s cont.rast with the duller grey/green e uca lypts of the native hardwood those areas such as the coastal plain forests. Th1s area m the Blackwood Valley nas been planned to provide strips of native where ta ll forests have never Y fo rest as corridors for fauna. grown. But in some areas where native forest is being converted to pines the verdant colour of the exotic conifers contrasts with the duller greys and greens of our native trees, and may be an unwelcome sight to some people. How.ever, they are being grown to prov1de a resource we need in much the sa me way as we cl~ar woodland in the wheatbelt to grow whea t. In the lo ng term, the total amount of pine forest is unlikely to exceed 100000 ha, which is only 5 per cent of the tota l area of State fares~. Pine fo:ests are performing the v1tal funct1 on of buying time for our hardwood forest to regrow, an d [or foresters to. bring it to its max1mum productive capacity. They a l s~ permit us to take large areas of nat1ve forest out of production fo r other purposes, such as recreation preservation of flora and fauna and landscape va lu es. NOTABLE TREES OF PERTH by Barney White New settlers in strange lands bring with them new influences, be they ideas, skills, animals, plants, etc. The Swan River Colony, later to become the metropolitan area of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, was no exception. The harsh feel and smoky blue colour of the native vegetation, so well adapted to the rigours of an ancient, sun scorched, nutrient drained landscape must have made the new settlers yearn for the softer greens of their homelands. Th e planting of many exotic tree species, for amenity as well as commercial purposes, was predictable. Surprising, however, is the fact that even the early introductions were not confined to species of European origin. Of the earlier introductions two species stand out- Moreton Bay Fig (Ficus macrophylla) and Norfolk Island Pine (Araucaria exce/sa). Neither of these species comes from Europe. The fig is native to the tropical and sub-tropical seabord of Queensland and New Sou th Wales, and the pine is endemic to Norfolk Island, some 1400 kilometres off the Australian -c The Moreton Bay Fig arching over Murray Street forms part of this historical locale in the city. 29 ~ The largest and one of the oldest trees in Pe rtl-i is this Moreton Bay Fig growi ng near the Swan River in Bassendean. It was probably planted in the 1830s. east coast. Presumably the first seeds or seedlings were brought west from the parent colony of New South Wales, where both species probably had been successfully propagated. Both came from areas of summer rainfall to endure the summer drought of the typical mediterranean type climate of Perth. The opulent green of the leaves and the density of the shade cast by the figs would appeal to anyone seeking shelter from a hot su n. The unbelievable symmetry of the crown and its equally incredible ability to grow arrow straight in the teeth of winter ga les make the Norfolk Island Pine a landmark tree o f distinction, and would have enjoyed specia l fa vour in the days of multi-masted sa iling ships. It is surprising how many notable trees of h1storical an d ornamental significance in Western Australia are in fact M oreton Bay Figs. The best known example is the one growing in Murray Street near the centre of the city outside the nurses quarters of the Royal Perth Hospital. The National Trust of W.A. sees this tree as being an essential component of the historical Murray Street East Precinct, a locale containing many fine examples of early West Australian architecture. Th e date of planting of this tree is not known. The largest and probably the oldest known individual Moreton Bay Fig is the tree growing in the yard of 2 Thompson Road, Bassendean, near where Captain Stirling, the founder of the Swan River Colony, is reputed to have landed. This area is some of the very first land to be taken up by the new settlers. Th e ~ Trees are part of our heritage and are often pla nted to mark important occasions. 30 Tree Society of W.A. believes this tree was planted in the first few years of the colony, making it now about 150 yea rs old. " Proclamation Tree" growing at the junction of Queen Victoria Street, Adelaide Street and Parry Street in the port of Fremantle is a Moreton Bay Fig. Other fine examples of the The tall, straight forms of the Norfolk Moreton Bay Fig ca n be seen in the Island Pines are a familiar part of Supreme Court Gardens, along the Perth's coastal environment, Esplanade, and in parks and the particularly at Cottesloe. grounds of older homes and establishments throughout the metropolitan area. Perhaps the best known Norfolk Island Pines in Perth are those comprising the "Cottesloe Skyline" . Th e oldest known examples are two trees growing in the yard of the pioneering Roe family in West Swan. Like the Figs, other fine examples of the Norfolk Island Pine exist in Hyde Park and in other parks and private gardens throughout the metropolitan area.