Day: December 30, 2019

Here
on this land
standing tall.
Proud warriors
oft with
spears aloft.
To them
fire
brings renewal.
A symbol
of hope
of strength.
Come
my friends
they say.
Let us
rebirth
these lands.
Grow
among the
blacken soil.
Take
the ashes
goodness within.
We shall
once more
be homes.
We shall
once more
be nurturers.
Standing tall
on this land
here.

In August 2018 (the Grass Tree on the left – you can just see the spear rising to the sky
A few days ago
In 2014 The Spotted Gum tree trunk is the same as the one in the previous photo

Xanthorrhoea or Grass Trees

They are ancient hardy plants that survive poor soils and respond to bushfires by flowering!!
Grass Trees are slow growing. They increase in height around 25mm or one inch and in some cases, in better soils, can grow 80mm or around three inches a year!! The Grass Tree in the foreground of the burnt ones is over 2 meters or about eight feet tall.
They survive fire as the growing point is under the ground. They have a root system, where microbes called mycorrhiza surround the roots in a symbiotic relationship bring nutrients to support growth.
The trunk is a mixture of the old leaves and a resin that they exude. The length of the skirt can indicate the last time a fire went through this gully. Compare the top and bottom photos.

Ref – https://www.bushheritage.org.au