Why
is Tasmanian Huon Pine So Special ?
Tasmanian
Huon Pine is a member of the family of Podocarpaceae. Its
botanical
name is Lagarostrobos franklinii. Huon Pine was discovered
in Tasmania's
South West and because it had a pine like leaf as well
as
the color of 'Pine' when first cut, people simply named it Pine.
It was soon discovered that the so called Pine had some unique and
sought after
qualities. It was easy to cut, soft yet extremely strong and
above all, it could float in its 'green' state. Huon Pine grows mostly along
river
banks, so the 'Piners' (Timber Fallers) used the river system to float
the Huon
Pine logs downstream to the established timber mills or places
where it could be stored for later use. The demand for this timber was
great and
it was harvested in huge quantities. Rafts were made from
the
freshly cut logs- some a mile long - and so towed down stream.
The
timber was used for all sorts of construction work but in the main for
ship building
as it had a great advantage over conventional timber with
the
presence of an oil with a unique property which made the wood
resistant
to all but a few marine organisms. It is written that the oil
was
also used to cure all sorts of 'indelicate' ailments
Huon
Pine is endemic to Tasmania - meaning that it can not be found
in any other
place on Earth. Of course our neighboring New Zealanders
claim
to have a distant cousin of the Huon Pine (Rimu) but the fine
grained,
beautiful honey coloured timber with its heavenly smell, called
Lagarostrobos
franklinii, grows only in Tasmania.
As
can be seen by the fine growth rings, it grows very slowly but for a
long time.
Trees of a thousand years of age are not uncommon and a lot
of
trees still standing, actually germinated well before the birth of Christ.
Due
to the slow growth and heavy harvesting of this species
in
the early years of Tasmania's settlement it is now
difficult
to find a stand of Huon Pine.
Tourists
and those interested can catch a glimpse of this
magnificent
tree in a number of places along Tasmania's West Coast.
The
falling of this rain forest species has ceased. All but a few grow in
Tasmania's
World Heritage areas and most remaining stands are now
fully
protected.
There
only two Huon Pine Timber Mills left in Tasmania each cutting
only the salvaged
saw logs from former dam construction sites.
Today,
Crafts People can obtain 'pine' either by the purchase of
a licence to collect
leftovers from the forest floor or by direct
purchase from one of the two
remaining timber mills at Strahan,
for the Tourist, or from Tasmanian Specialty
Timbers at Queenstown.
