Wollemia nobilis

Wollemi Pine
Wollemia nobilis
Type: Evergreen Tree
Exposure: Light or Part Shade
Water: Regular

Today’s plant is a bit of a curiosity.

Until 1994, this ancient tree was thought to exist nowhere except in fossils, some dating back 200 million years Then, in a park in New South Wales, just 93mi (150km) from Sydney, Australia called Wollemi National Park, one was discovered, growing in a temperate rainforest.

Today it’s on the critically endangered list, but still a huge step up from being extinct, I guess. While not a true pine, it will nonetheless reach 80-130ft (24-39m) in maturity, although it coppices readily, making it quite manageable as a container plant. The bark has a distinctive, brown knobby appearance, said to resemble (according to Wikipedia) Coco-Pops breakfast cereal. Flat, linear needles range from 1-3in (2.5-7.5cm), and densely clothe horizontal, slightly drooping branches. After a few years, cones appear at the branch ends. Wollemi pines start out growing slowly, but eventually it will gain about 20in (50cm) a year in favorable conditions. It prefers acidic soil conditions, and will scorch in hot sun conditions.

Cheers,

John