On Thu, 13 Jan 2011 09:51:08 -0800, "David E. Ross"
wrote:

On 1/12/11 11:36 PM, Golden One wrote:
On Jan 10, 12:27 pm, "David Hare-Scott" wrote:
MiamiCuse wrote:
I really like this tree. Saw a specimen of it in the ground at a
local nursery, it was about 15' tall with a tree trunk about six
inches in diameter. They said it has been there since 1998. They
planted it about five feet from the wall of the store. They have
some for sale right now.
http://eucalyptusdeglupta.com/trunk02a.jpg
http://eucalyptusdeglupta.com/trunk03.jpg
http://eucalyptusdeglupta.com/5tree.jpg

The problem is according to my search, in it's native habitat it
grows to 250 feet with huge trunk. The local nusery said in here
(miami, south Florida) it will not grow to near that size, but they
can't tell me anything more. They planted one right next to their
foundation wall and it has not grown to be huge.

It's certain not to grow to that size in any timeframe that the nursery
would care about but that isn't the answer to your question.

So my question is whether I should take a risk and plant one. On my
property I can plant one 25' or 30' from the house. I don't know if
this is enough distance, the guy at the nusery says no problem, but
he was trying to sell me a tree. Anyone has experience with this
tree?

How close is your climate and soil to those of its native range? Will it
get full sun? The closer you are to its native environment the closer it
will get to its maximum size. Even though many eucalypts are fast growing
it is unlikely to make 200ft in your lifetime :-)

Big trees near the house are a risk of falling over or dropping branches.
Some Eucalypts have additional risks in that they shed branches at
unpredictable times - that is you don't have to wait for a wind storm. I
don't know if this one has that habit as being a foreigner it isn't in any
of my books.

Even if it only makes 60-80ft high, 30ft from the house is too close for me.
When you see houses crushed under eucalypts on the TV news after every big
storm because optimists don't think it can happen to them you get cautious.
Are you prepared to take it down in 10-20 years time if necessary?

In addition it is likely to be messy like most eucalypts, they drop
leaves all year round and this one sheds bark as well. You will not
have much success at growing anything under it, they use all available
water. Maybe bromeliads that you can overhead water.


All trees drop leaves.

Some drop throughout the year. Ask anyone who has a pine tree or a
southern magnolia.

Others drop leaves seasonally. I have mounds of leaves on my patio and
paths because the garden-waste bin is full of leaves, all from my ash
tree. My compost pile has all the leaves it can handle without
disrupting the composting process. My flower and shrub beds are mulched
with enough leaves to keep the soil cool and moist this coming summer.
And the tree is still dropping.

Even palms drop their fronds.

Also, while this particular eucalyptus sheds bark, there are "iron-bark"
eucalyptus trees that do not shed. These include the red-flowering gum
and the pink ironbark.

However very few deciduous plants drop a noticeable amount of leaves
during their growing season... conifers especially hold on to their
needles until the very end of their growth period and then drop the
needles from the previous year's growth, and if left to their own
devices pine needles compost as quickly as they drop. Even trees that
shed bark in sheets don't molt much during their growing season. When
people speak of "dirty" trees they are refering to those that drop
fruit/seed pods... but that occurs over a relatively brief period. The
thing is trees are messy only if planted inappropriately... if all one
has is like a 3,000 sqft yard then they should think very carefully
about whatever trees they plant. And even if one plans to have a
large fast growing tree removed in 25 years they had best start a
removal fund the day they plant it... one of my neighbors had a 70'
tall willow tree removed from his front yard this past summer, got
really scared it would come down on his house during a period of high
winds... cost him $1,200 to have that tree taken down, hauled away,
and stump ground. That stump was some five feet in diameter... he
planted that tree as a cute sapling forty years previously.