I am totally in love with them and the way their "hair" falls so neatly.
We passed through Bakers Swamp without noticing anything. Then reached our last dot on the map for this trip - Larras Lee and saw this. The roadside monument says: In Memory of WILLIAM LEE (1794 - 1870) of "Larras Lake" a pioneer of the sheep and cattle industry and first member for Roxburgh under responsible government (1856 - 1859). This stone was erected by his descendants. --- 1938 --- This is a repost from a few days ago. Thinking I would use this for this week’s Taphophile Tragics post I dug a little further into William Lee’s story, it’s a very colonial Australian one. William was born of convict parents, living his childhood years around the Sydney region. In his early 20s he was issued with some government cattle, recommended as a suitable settler and granted 134 acres at Kelso near Bathurst. He was one of the first in the area and did well. A few years later he was granted a ram and an inc...
I remember reading that the Aborigines used to eat parts of the grass tree but I couldn't remember which bits.
ReplyDeleteSo, of course I went googling.
This is what I found:
To Aborigines the Grasstree was an exceptionally useful plant. The flower is laden with sweet nectar and can be sucked or soaked in water to produce a sweet drink. The crisp crown of the trunk was traditionally split open and the starch eaten raw, but this is not recommended because it kills the tree. Grasstree starch is high in carbohydrates (41%) more than twice the calorie content of potatoes (Low, 1988). The resin was used by Aborigines as glue and the wooden flower stalks were made into firesticks or spears. Dead trunks sometimes contain edible white grubs and provide excellent firewood that burns with intense heat even in wet conditions.
Thanks for the research Letty. Here is what a sign in the park said
Delete"Early settlers used the resin as a medicine for bowel complaints, as a constituent in perfume, and as an alternative to shellac for furniture polishing. It was often cleared by graziers because stock sometimes became ill after eating the leaves.
Earlier this century many grass trees were harvested for use in making chemical products and explosives. It is possible the Australian soldiers were killed by explosives Germany reportedly made with the large quantities of resin imported before the war.
Wow. Resin for bowel complaints - I suppose that would work!!
DeleteAnd in chemicals and explosives - what a versatile plant.
What interesting trees. And yes, they look beautiful, too.
ReplyDeleteYeh really interesting and even with a German link ... see the note I've added above :-)
DeleteOi, I did not know this. I would have preferred if Germany had imported the trees because of their beauty, :-(
DeleteThe top shot is fantastic! This spot looks like something out of this world.
ReplyDeleteI almost expect to see dinosaurs wandering in to take a munch.
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