Monthly Archives: December 2012

Tall straight trunks shed shaggy, papery sheaths of bark in the eucalyptus grove. The forest floor is covered with long, sickle-shaped leaves and hard, blue-tinted nuts. Young sprouts–and sprouts from mature trunks–have rounded, blue-gray leaves that are completely from those of mature trees. This is Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus, Tasmanian blue gum): beautiful, flammable and invasive.

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Blue gum was first planted in Marin as a fast-growing windbreaks and for a brief time as a commercial crop (though as far as I know this never was lucrative). As a native to southern Australia, it thrives in California and spreads quickly. No native plants can grow in Eucalyptus stands–either because the leaf litter is so thick, or because they are killed off by the strong-smelling oils the tree produces. The same oils and abundant shedding of bark and leaves can turn these trees into torches during a wildfire, increasing the danger for homes and people nearby; though they are lovely it’s a good idea to cut them down and stop their spread wherever possible.

There are several other species of Eucalyptus that can be found in Marin, but this is the most weedy and common.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

When I was a kid we’d go into the forest by our house and cut down our own Christmas tree. It was always a Doug fir–perhaps a little paler, scrawnier and scragglier than the deep green varieties for sale in a lot. But these wild trees were the most beautiful in my eyes.

Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) is characterized by branches covered with soft, dense needles. The cones are unique for their “rat tail” bracts, which look like a cartoon silhouette of the legs and tail of a rodent. Young trees have blisters of sap under their thin bark; if you climb them you are likely to get sticky.

This is a versatile survivor of a tree. It thrives in disturbed environments, and can quickly grow to fill meadows and gaps in the forest. It’s the source of the most timber in North America, and is a vibrant part of the ecosystem from BC to central California. The wood is used for  lumber, timbers, and plywood. Great beams are soaked in creosote and used for building piers, pilings, docks and other marine structures. The wood is also made into railroad ties, mine timbers, house logs, posts and poles, flooring, veneer, pulp, and furniture. Birds, rodents, elk, and deer all use Doug fir for food and shelter.

The rat-tail bracts of a Doug fir cone