Old Growth Arboriculture

Old Growth Arboriculture Tree Care and Assessment from Seed to Senescence

Should urban trees like this be protected in Adelaide?Read the Position Paper!https://static1.squarespace.com/static/656...
28/09/2026

Should urban trees like this be protected in Adelaide?

Read the Position Paper!

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65697588f67acf1cf4201a41/t/6aba271d251ca64a2c9c2568/1790584608850/Tree_regulations_review.pdf

The pictured species, Melaleuca styphelioides, is generically exempt from Regulation under State planning laws meaning it can be legally removed by the owner without approval but it is a useful Australian native tree tolerant of tough urban conditions.

This is just one example of many inconsistencies and loopholes that prevent a good statewide system from achieving its intended outcomes as well as it could.

The position paper published by Old Growth Arboriculture recommending changes within the existing planning frameworks for urban tree protection that would improve outcomes, including changes to the definitions of Regulated trees and tree damaging activity as well as new inclusions and exclusions for generically exempt species.

Another major bus depot tree audit completed today, this time at Mount Barker.
16/09/2026

Another major bus depot tree audit completed today, this time at Mount Barker.

The Bethany tree, many centuries old River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) and likely used as an Aboriginal shelter t...
08/09/2026

The Bethany tree, many centuries old River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) and likely used as an Aboriginal shelter tree.

04/09/2026

Our paper led by PhD candidate Chloe Bentz will be of interest to ecologists interested in canopy dieback and bird declines but particularly to the local suite of ecologists and land managers in South Australia.

Chloe has pulled together a complex analysis building on previous analyses of woodland bird trajectories by others to see how these bird communities have been affected by canopy dieback of stringybark eucalypts - an important system, forming the most intact forests in the Mount Lofty Ranges but vulnerable to environmental conditions and changes.

The study has been published in the high-impact, peer-reviewed, international journal, Biological Conservation

The article is open access and the pdf can be freely downloaded.

Hong Kong Orchid Tree (Bauhinia x blakeana) lighting up the streets of good ol' Davoren Park (dare I say much needed).An...
24/08/2026

Hong Kong Orchid Tree (Bauhinia x blakeana) lighting up the streets of good ol' Davoren Park (dare I say much needed).

Another compact, ornamental tree species that is perhaps underutilised as a street and garden tree around Adelaide.

Veteran Southern Cypress Pine (Callitris gracilis) on outcropping granite formation, Murraylands, South Australia.
19/08/2026

Veteran Southern Cypress Pine (Callitris gracilis) on outcropping granite formation, Murraylands, South Australia.

Came across this specimen of Eucalyptus cosmophylla (Cup Gum). It is a small and compact tree species with ornamental la...
11/08/2026

Came across this specimen of Eucalyptus cosmophylla (Cup Gum). It is a small and compact tree species with ornamental large fruits that could be used much more in cultivation.

Part of the reason behind its lack of use in Adelaide is likely its aversion to lime soils. In its natural range in the Mount Lofty Ranges it prefers acid soils often in a narrow habitat type consisting of shallow sand over rock in wet areas so it is waterlogged in winter and bone dry in summer.

Dwarfed veteran Melaleuca armillaris tree I spotted today.The species isn't especially long-lived in cultivation in Adel...
11/08/2026

Dwarfed veteran Melaleuca armillaris tree I spotted today.

The species isn't especially long-lived in cultivation in Adelaide (50-60 years then they tend to fall apart) but can develop a gnarled, ancient appearance.

Tree hospital #21Can't be toppedLopping and topping mature trees is rarely a good idea. As seen in this River Red Gum i...
04/08/2026

Tree hospital #21

Can't be topped

Lopping and topping mature trees is rarely a good idea. As seen in this River Red Gum in the southern suburbs of Adelaide, the crude pruning practice predictably results in a dead stub with masses of sprouts shooting up vertically. These sprouts are different to normal branches. They arise from epicormic buds and grow vigorously and try to cling onto the the stump but they are weakly attached. As they grow big and the cut trunk decays, they can pose a risk of snapping off, and often do.

I've just had to condemn a different tree of the same species with the same issue only more advanced (10+ years) because the shoots, now massive, are likely to break off and hit structures or people nearby. Someone's attempt to reduce perceived risk has only increased it and doomed the tree to a short life.

South Australia's planning policies also forbid this kind of overzealous pruning of significant trees as the 30% maintenance provision is not considered to include the removal of major limbs without arborist justification.

Naturally dwarfed Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa) on granite outcrop in South Dakota - amazing resilient trees and rock...
18/07/2026

Naturally dwarfed Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa) on granite outcrop in South Dakota - amazing resilient trees and rock formations 😎🌲

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