Yesterday I posted some photographs of healthy Blue Gums in the Grose Valley.
I suggested in the comment thread that followed, that River Red Gums are more suseptible to fire, and that a fire in October 2006 in the Barmah forest destroyed many trees.
River Red Gums are also susceptible to drought.
The following photographs were taken in the Murray Valley last November.
West of Koondrook before the Kerang turnoff, November 21, 2007
West of Koondrook before the Kerang turnoff, November 21, 2007
West of Koondrook before the Kerang turnoff, November 21, 2007
Trees along the Murray River were healthy, but this isolated stand of trees on a farmed section of the floodplain appeared mostly dead – I assume from drought.
Jennifer Marohasy BSc PhD has worked in industry and government. She is currently researching a novel technique for long-range weather forecasting funded by the B. Macfie Family Foundation.
Is it possible they were killled off by rising salt as the freshwater underground supplies are used up for irrigation etc during drought periods. I have seen river gums still thriving in drought areas where there is no irrigation taking place?