Friday, January 22, 2016

EUCALYPTUS TREES - FRIENDS FROM AUSTRALIA



Eucalyptus trees are blooming so very beautifully. Together with the flowers, also buds and fruit are present, which makes them truly special, pretty and wonderful.


Eucalyptus trees can be found all over Israel, from the Galilee and the Golan Heights in the north till the Northern Negev Desert in the south. They are not native to the land, but were brought at the end of the nineteenth century from Australia. The idea was to plant them to dry the swamps, and get rid of the dangerous malaria mosquitoes. There are hundreds of different kinds of eucalyptus trees. Here the most common species is the Eucalyptus Camaldulensis, which grows to a stunning height of about 45 meters. Eucalyptus is a very fast growing tree. The leaves contain camphor and other properties and can be steam distilled to extract oil, which has many uses in the pharmaceutic and cosmetic industry. 

The eucalyptus trees are evergreen and blossom for seven or eight months of the year. They are very much appreciated by bee keepers. While it is not a good time for honeybees worldwide, local bee population is thriving. The honey the bees produce from the nectar of the flowers is amber colored, a bit spicy and less sweet than other honeys. The health benefits are enormous.

The eucalyptus trees, together with the palm trees and olive trees are a distinct part of the Israeli landscape. The wind rustling through the long spear like smooth leaves of an eucalyptus grove makes a lovely and peaceful sound, and the scent is fresh and soothing.


Photos by Uri Eshkar, taken yesterday near Omer in the Negev Desert

6 comments:

Bob Bushell said...

Beautiful eucalyptus trees, the bell type is fascinating. Thanks Yael and Uri.

Dawn of LaTouchables said...

Always a pleasure to read these very informative posts with the wonderful photography from Uri. Thank you, Yael!

Tammie Lee said...

I was thinking of eucalyptus earlier today, wanting to draw them. I can almost smell them from your lovely images. the trees were also brought to California. They thought to grow them for railroad ties. But while the wood dries it twists and is not good for this use. But they are lovely.

stardust said...

The eucalyptus trees sound so nice and useful in many points. I can almost hear the rustling sound of the leaves in the wind and smell the soothing aroma through your words and Uri’s wonderful photos.

Reading your comment on my post, I understand your place is sunny and hot with occasional rain as blessing. I like wintry weather for its bracing air and don’t dislike rainy days but rainy days of winter can be depressing. I tell myself not to shrink and straight up. Today I’m happy with the blue skies. Have happy days ahead, Yael.

Yoko

Brizanne said...

Liebe Yael
ich bin schon ein Weilchen wieder mit einem anderen Blog unterwegs....
Wenn ich deine Fotos sehe, kommen mir gerade die sûssen Eukaliptusdröpschen, die es in der Schweiz zu kaufen gibt, in den Sinn....
Ich hoffe, dass du gesund und munter bist und schicke dir herzlichzste Grüsse
Brigitte

Friko said...

Hello Yael,

how are you? I hope all is well with you and you are just taking a break from blogging.

Eucalyptus trees cannot survive a harsh winter. I had a very beautiful tree in my garden. It simply died. There is another one in the next garden, that is dead too but still standing, with bare silver branches.