Prehistoric Pines Coming To A Garden Near You

IOL ^ | 9-19-2003

[blam]

Prehistoric pines coming to a garden near you

September 19 2003 at 09:12AM

Sydney - The Wollemi pine is so precious that anyone attempting to find the secret stands of the 150-million-year-old "living fossil" in Australia's south-east corner risks a fine of AUS$220 000 (about R1,6-million).

But botanist Sally McGeoch said Friday that before the end of next year saplings of a species once thought extinct would be on sale in garden centres around the world.

The pines are in commercial cultivation and 150 000 of them will be ready for release in 18 months.

McGeoch, spokesperson for Wollemi Pine International, told Australia's AAP news agency that the Jurassic-age Wollemi had generated phenomenal interest among gardeners in the United States, Asia and Europe.

'The equivalent of finding a small dinosaur still alive on earth' The pines could survive in hot or cold climates and would even suit apartment dwellers. "They grow particularly well indoors, so for people that don't have large backyards, that's great news," McGeoch said.

Ranger Dave Noble came across the stand of Wollemi in September 1994 in the Blue Mountains a couple of hours' drive from Sydney.

The 500 000 hectare patch where the stand was found was designated the Wollemi Wilderness and is out of bounds to the general public.

Professor Carrick Chambers, director of Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens, said at the time of the discovery that it was "the equivalent of finding a small dinosaur still alive on earth".

The foliage of the Wollemi - although it's a pine it has leaves rather than needles - was like nothing botanists had seen except in 91 million-year-old fossils.

Once abundant in Australia, the tree disappeared from the fossil record two million years ago and had been thought to be extinct.

Now, they are set for an amazing comeback. - Sapa-DPA

[StatesEnemy]

Ornamental Kudzu

[LisaAnne]

You post the most interesting articles! Thanks. :o)

[EggsAckley]

I WANT one!!

[EggsAckley]

LOL!

[Saturnalia]

To prevent any Crevo discussion on this thread I hearby declare everyone present to be Nazis.
Now that we don't need to worry about that, I want one!

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Where can I get one of these ?

[StriperSniper]

Prehistoric plant bump.

[blam]

Four Year Old Wollemi Pine

[EggsAckley]

COOL!

[bigfootbob]

Yippee!!! I've been waiting for this development for 8 years. I'm an extreme plant nut, and I have a spot in my botanical garden waiting for one of these pines. I have another extremely rare conifer from Australia, called Athrotaxus cupressides, or known in Australia as a whip cord cedar.

The Wollemi pine is unlike anything else in the pinus genus, very ornamental. These botanists will make a ton of money on this tree. I bet they'll get 5,000-10,000 per cutting, at least for the first couple of years. Then others like myself will have one, we'll pay our license fee and breed them like crazy and by 10 years from now the average Joe will be able to have one in their garden.

[blam]

I like my Bald Cypress, the only conifer that sheds it's needles in the winter time

[Verginius Rufus]

The dawn redwood (although thought to be extinct until rediscovered about 60 years ago) also loses its needles in the winter. Beautiful trees.

There are about 9,000 species of small dinosaurs still alive...they're called "birds."

[bigfootbob]

Great tree!! One of my alltime favorites. Actually, it is the first tree I learned as a kid. We had a stand of them on of corner of one of our soybean fields. I love their "knees".
There is another conifer species that looses its needles and you might like to check one out. Larix decidua or European Larch. There's a really cool form called L. Tortuosa which is a weeping sport. Also L. occidentalis, Western larch sheds its needles too

[Eala]

Ornamental Kudzu

I was thinking the same, but you put it well.

[WilliamWallace1999]

Dawn Redwood lovers bump. Yep, I have a 14 foot tall one in my yard that I grew from a 10 inch cutting. I thought the thing had died the first winter when all the leaves fell off after I had moved it outside.

[JOHANNES801]

Do they make good fire wood.

[southernnorthcarolina]

The pines could survive in hot or cold climates and would even suit apartment dwellers.

OK, I've gotta ask... If they were all that adaptable, why did they nearly become extinct? Maybe a parasite which itself has since become extinct? Interesting article!

[Consort]

The prehistoric pines will attract prehistoric arboreal creatures, which, in turn, will attract prehistoric carnivores/predators. Soon all the wombats, roos, wallabies, and platypusies will disappear.

[biggerten]

Tamaracks (sometimes referred to as Larches), are conifers that lose their needles in the wntertime. Come to Northern Wisconsin or Minnesota and I'll show you millions of them.