Tasmanian Hardwood Trees

Obliqua mountain ash alpine ash messmate.

Tasmanian hardwood trees. Image thanks to tourism tasmania garry moore. Most commonly made from a combination of alpine ash mountain ash and messmate tasmanian oak flooring is characterised by the commonalities between all three species. However this defining group of giants is all but unknown to most tasmanians. Tasmanian oak a strong durable hardwood used in all classes of building flooring and internal work.

Tasmania is home to the tallest hardwood trees in the world and many of them are considered to be giants. These hardwood species are large trees that grow up to 90 metres in height. Tasmanian oak is light in colour varying from straw to reddish brown with intermediate shades of cream to pink. Tasmanian oak mountain gum white top rose gum flooded gum white mahogany yellow stringybark spotted gum blackbutt ironbark grey red broad leaved narrow leafed bloodwood brown pale red sydney blue gum white gum kwila merbau.

The forresters who found the tree named it centurion after a commander of a century 100 soldiers in the ancient roman army. Renowned for almost 200 years each species has its own character and individual richness. This magnificent plant is the world s tallest hardwood eucalyptus and flowering tree and lives just 5 kilometres from tasmania s popular tahune airwalk. Tasmanian timber marketed as tasmanian oak or tassie oak is most often a combination of three distinct species of tree all of which are found most often in you guessed it tasmania and while they are all certainly similar there is a wide amount of variation between the three.

Has light colour and is well suited to finishing with stain to match existing timber work. The younger growth tends to be lighter in colour while the older trees can be darker across the spectrum. This mix of hardwood species ranges from straw blonde to pale and dark pink through to chocolate blonde. Described as the epicentre of tasmanian tall trees the andromeda stand is internationally recognised as the tallest grove of flowering trees on earth and is the finest example of ultra tall eucalypt forest in the world.

Giant trees are more than 85 metres tall or 280 cubic metres in volume according to sustainable timber tasmania formerly forestry tasmania. Tasmanian oak refers to three eucalypt species commonly found in tasmania as well as alpine regions in victoria and nsw. Sustainable timber tasmania grows two main eucalyptus species eucalyptus globulus tasmanian blue gum and eucalyptus nitens shining gum. Tasmania with its unique geography and environment has some of the finest cool temperate hardwood forests in the world and an expanding hardwood and softwood plantation estate.

Both species have been selected for high growth rates and desirable wood properties.