Turpentine tree – good or bad?

• Papa-Stefano3p

  said

  I have a friend who curses the Turpentines in her neighbours yard as nothing grows under them on that side of her garden. I am just buying a property that has four or five huge, very mature Turpentines fairly close to the house. I think they are way too big to remove and I think they will provide a good windbreak and general shelter. They are pretty impressive specimens too. Should I give up trying to grow anything under them? Why are they bad? Do they affect the soil quality? Or take all the moisture? Or drop evil sap? I can’t really find out much about them on the internet.
• cwcarolync

  said

  I will watch this ….. I have no answers.

  I don’t even know what turpentines are ….. pics please.

  Cheers Carolyn
• Papa-Stefano3p

  said

  The property is on the NSW Sth Coast and I’m in Sydney so I can’t whip out and take a pic I’m afraid! I’ll try and drag something off the net…

  Papa
• hewitt12

  said

  We’ll Ill be damned. We need edible images for it in order so that we could discuss such certain matters and could come up with a solution.
• cwcarolync

  said

  That would be good Papa.

  Thanks ….. honestly if they are really big & close to where the house is … get rid of them.

  I have done Larry & Yasi …. believe me you don’t want serious wind & big trees in the same area as your hacienda ….. double esp. if they are a pest, & your friend is iffy on them.

  Without seeing them or knowing anything about them …. I would be seriously thinking looking at getting some proffessionals to come in & lop them down.

  Says she who has planted 3,000 + ish HUGE rainforest plants … but they are all in the paddocks & if they fall they won’t lob on a building or us !!

  None of them have turpentine attached to their names. The only turpentine plant I have ever known was a turpentine mango …. & it was YUCKO !!!!!

  LUCK

  Cheers carolyn
• bulborum81p

  said

  Hello Papa

  Welcome here

  Is it Canarium australianum ??
  see picture

  Site:[url=http://www.sgaptownsville.org.au/Canarium-australianum.html]Turpentine tree[/url]

  Roland
• Papa-Stefano3p

  said

  This is they. I’m pretty sure the Scynarpia glomulifera according to the site that I got the images from. But no info on why or how they would be problematic…
• bulborum81p

  said

  If I see the pictures below
  from Scynarpia glomulifera in a park
  I don’t see any problems
  grass is growing to the trunk
  so why not other plants for the shade

  Roland
• biologist

  said

  There is nothing “wrong” with Turpentine trees, any large tree will have an extensive root system that will make it hard for other plants to grow underneath them. That’s just what big trees do. Either you like the tree or you don’t, this is a truly arbitrary decision.

  :face-smile:
• bulborum81p

  said

  I agree completely with you
  one of the reasons we bought our house
  was because of the two giant (20 meter) pear trees:face-surprise:

  Roland
• cwcarolync

  said

  I agree with Roland & Biologist. Duh me … I hadn’t thought of the shade stuff. Definitely go for shade loving plants.

  However the size of the things close to the house does bother me.

  I guess I can blame 2 x cat 5 cyclones for that.

  We were soooooooooo lucky in C. Larry … all our huge trees hit the deck … i.e. landed on the lawn, & left huge dents & craters all over … it was literally sheer LUCK that none of them ended up crashing through the humble abode & injured / killed us.

  Big trees are WONDERFUL. I love them … I grow them ….. but I won’t have them near the humble abode …. before C. Larry I was very blaise (sp?)

  I’m now aware of how much damage they can do …. & how potentially deadly they can be.
• Papa-Stefano3p

  said

  Thank you everybody. Biologist, good point – a truly ‘arboritary’ decision (ha ha!).
  They are great trees. There was never a chance I would remove them. I guess the complimentary growing decisions need to made in context with their scale, shade, position etc. Certainly I have not been able to establish any other evidence that they are an unfriendly species where other plantings are concerned.

  cheers

  Papa