This is what our place looks at the moment. Unfortunately it is on a different scale (and a different angle) but you get the picture (lol). You may have to double click on the photo to show detail.
We now have a small wholesale nursery on one side. They are great neighbours and luckily aren't too heavily into chemicals which were first worried about when it was sold to become a nursery. Luckily too, they have kept a lot of their bigger timber at the back of their block.
Actually when I first saw this aerial photo (courtesy of Google maps) I was a little shocked as it doesn't seem to show as much clearing as I had thought. There has been wide scale clearing in the 5 - 10 km radius, but this little snap doesn't quite get it all in. It does however show quite a bit of growth on our place!
Unfortunately, as a result of the surrounding clearing, we have noticed a significant drop in the number of koalas visiting. I have a sticker on my that car says *no tree no me* (Australian Koala Foundation). When a property is cleared and houses go in, koala habitat has gone. I could say more, but I think I'll leave it at that. It is very easy to do a little research and realize the extent of the threat to these beautiful creatures.
This is a photo I took of one of our visitors (not a very good one, I keep apologizing for my photos, must get a better camera). Can you see the dark patch on his white chest? When the males climb a tree, they leave their scent as a marker on it - this leaves a dark stain on his chest.
On our clothesline at the moment. At last I don't have to dive into that carry bag with a peg on my nose!
Cheers Wendy
