I mentioned in an earlier post about planting carob trees – which are all doing nicely, even the one that we managed to break! One did start to flower, which makes me a little nervous – it’s either a sign that it’s doing well, or that final flourish before the end. I’m hoping it’s the former. It looks like it’s doing well, so I’ll keep my fingers crossed!
We’ve also planted an apple tree, which needs a bit more protection that it currently gets, which made me think on a current debate happening in The Diggers Club magazines. Founder Clive Blazey is arguing that as we enter the Pyrocene, at least here in Australia, when our landscape could well be dominated by inferno fires, such as we saw in 2019-20, we need to think hard about prioritising native plants over more fire resistant, or even retardant, species.
Both apple and carob are fire resistant, unlike the Mountain Ash which dominates the site, and this property definitely played a part in my choice. But at the same time, I want to try and ensure that we are creating habitat for native species, plant, animal and fungal. It’s a balancing act, and I’m not entirely sure where the sweet spot is – but the tendency for Mountain Ash to exacerbate firestorms is definitely a problem in my area.
For now, I’m trying to plant fire resistant natives, such as pigface, even if they aren’t endemic to the area, while trying to protect the species that are already in place. What would your strategies be, and in the face of fires such as we saw on Black Saturday in 2009, is the whole debate futile? 🙁
