The Tree Blog

Posts Tagged ‘palm’

Melbourne's famous Fitzroy Garden's elms are dying - Image by Melburnian on Wikipedia

Melbourne, an Australian city famous for its parks and gardens is about to lose half its historic trees due to ongoing drought and water restrictions according to a recent article in The Age.

The trees in the historic stands of elms in the Fitzroy Gardens in East Melbourne and the famous palms of the Catani gardens in St Kilda are all but dead, the report claims, with the local councils apparently powerless to do anything about it.    It is perhaps ironic that in their century or longer histories these trees have survived the Elm bettle, Dutch Elm disease and Fusarium wilt only to die from a lack of anyone willing to water them ….

What is effectively a boon for Melbourne’s arborists could be the beginning of bad times for the city’s tourism industry if its trees die.

Cocos palms and their fruits

In the 1980s, the Cocos (Syagrus romanzoffiana) or Queen Palm, originally introduced from Brazil, was arguably Queensland’s most fashionable palm.

Being cheap and quick growing, they literally sprang up everywhere, from backyards to resorts, carparks, office plazas, schools and street trees.

Now, one of our biggest growth services is Cocos palm removal in Brisbane.  You see, because it has recently been declared a weed of national significance.   The fruits attract flying foxes which helps the seeds to spread and become an invasive pest.  It is actually banned in some areas and you can be fined for having them.  Not to mention that their fronds frequently shed and are a nuisance to keep clean and looking good.

They are actually hardy plants and due to their height and rock hard trunk, removal is quite tricky and best done by experts.