Small-leafed Eucalypts

[GavinG]

Here you go Neal, Eucs with small leaves and internodes. Well, smaller than a Japanese. maple.

E.cinerea, beautiful blue-grey, and barks up well. Local to Canberra.

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E. parvifolia, also local, not sure how fast it grows.

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E. dalrympleana, same.

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E. crenulata, the best in my opinion - beautiful small leaves, barks up early and grows strongly here. Anyone in Melbourne or Canberra who doesn't have a dozen of them is seriously missing out.

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A larger cinerea, about five or six years.

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E. scoparia - internodes are starting to get a bit long, but the bark is wonderful.

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E. stellulata, another local, curious angular habit.

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E. bridgesiana, grows strongly, just had a haircut. ?Six years.

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They are all, except the last, growing on, but you get the idea. Plenty to choose from.

Some others: E. orbifolia and E. crucis (a bit off the beaten track), E. aggregata, and E. rubida. And of course E. nichollii, but I don't like it because it is so ruthlessly top dominant. PeterH has posted some excellent examples.

Have fun!

Gavin

[Rory]

FINALLY! Someone posts a decent beer. Well done good sir, well done. Next time you're up in my area, I will have a few of these in the fridge for you if you're interested.

....and some nice euc info, but insignificant next to that drop. Funnily enough, once they opened the Victorian brewery, they no longer ship them from WA to save on transport, but they can't replicate the taste exactly. It isn't as good as the magic from WA.

[shibui]

Thanks for the inspiration Gavin.
I note that most of these are still showing juvenile foliage. What happens when they reach adult foliage stage?
I have tried bridgesiana and adult foliage is as large and coarse as many others.
Crenulata retains juvenile foliage for many years and may do so for ever if regularly pruned but most of the others will eventually try to become grownups I think.
Stellulata and parvifolia both seem to be high country species and they don't seem to like growing where it gets a bit hotter (or maybe don't like lack of cold in winter?)

It is great to see there are people silly enough to keep trying. You are the ones who will make all the breakthroughs so the rest of us can take your newfound knowledge and join in later without all the trauma of failures and losses

[GavinG]

Hi Neal. I've never had adult foliage on E. bridgesiana, although I've grown it unpruned and long for a year at a time. In bonsai care the frequent pruning will keep the juvenile foliage (small, finely shaped, blue-grey) always present. They, and crenulata are tough - they survive me. I'm starting to battle with branch shaping now - not easy to look "natural", interesting and artistic. I've been accused of being "design-oriented" - that seems to mean I like my trees to do something interesting, in each detail.

Same (juvenile foliage) goes for everything else on my list. You certainly need to find what suits your climate, although I wouldn't think Yackandandandah was all that different from Canb. It's certainly not humid and coastal.

(Silly enough?!? Seriously? I repotted 45 Eucs last November, and I'm sure I still don't have "enough", whatever that is. Each to his own, nursery owner!)

Rory, I liked the idea of a Little Creatures beer to measure bonsai by. As well as its remarkable excellence. Some others to add to the list, Pilsener Urquell, Hairy Mary (Aus, can't remember the brand) and a wonderful sticky stout called Old Engine Oil, made by Harviestoun. And a swing-top Grolsch to get the juices flowing.

And that's enough rant from me. Great country, good people (99%) and great trees to work with. A Lucky Country, but getting hotter.

Gavin