TREE DETAILS
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Common Name : |
Norfolk Island Pine |
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Scientific Name : |
Araucaria excelsa |
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Circumference : |
4.47 metres (175 inches) |
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Height : |
29.00 metres (95 feet) |
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Crown : |
18.00 metres (59 feet) |
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Points : |
285 |
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State : |
SA |
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Town : |
Adelaide, Brighton |
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Access : |
Public |
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Location : |
Entrance to Kingston Caravan Park |
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Coordinates : |
35 02 18.28 S 138 30 58.18 E Click to view in maps |
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Nominator : |
Ian Bevege |
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Year Measured : |
2012 |
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Age : |
150 |
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Type : |
Planted |
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Comments : |
Notes from Ian Bevege: The western tree is recorded. It has had its upper crown removed circa 2000, possibly to protect the adjacent kiosk. It has coppiced and is forming a new leader - this is apparent from the photos. The eastern tree retains its original crown and its measurements are: 3.59m circumference, 32m high, 10m crown, 254 Points. This entry is a bit unusual as it covers two trees, not one. The reason for this is that these are historical trees planted by Sir George Kingston in 1865 to commemorate his two sons. The trees are named Paddy and Charlie for them. George Kingston was a larger than life figure in the political milieu of South Australia. An engineer by profession, he was Col. William Light’s deputy surveyor general and was responsible for laying out Adelaide. He was later a colourful politician in the SA Assembly. He acquired and extended Kingston House now a SA National Trust property. The trees were planted where the track from the house met the beach - now the road into the Kingston Caravan Park. They are a nice pigeon pair but unfortunately the larger of the two, on the lower beach side of the track, was lopped circa 2000 as near as I can tell from assessing the growth since then. There is a plaque on the upper tree and I have provided a pic of this. I have many pics of these two trees and the ones I have provided are from 13 Dec 2010 and 27 August 2012. The trees are foreshortened in the two pics looking up the hill but the others give a better idea of overall and relative size. The measurements are from the August 2012 visit when the trees were aged 137 years. Interestingly, the planting of these two trees predate the planting of the Araucaria Avenue in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens by Richard Schomburgk in 1868, so the Kingston trees are amongst the oldest, if not are the oldest NIPs in the state. Kingston was a contemporary of John Baker and they served together in the SA Parliament ; Baker in the Legislative Council from 1851-65 (being Premier in 1857), and Kingston the LC from 1851 becoming Speaker of the Assembly in 1857 until 1880. Baker was a trustee of the Botanic Gardens and was involved in the selection of the site (established 1854), so one might speculate that these two men had a common interest in trees and Baker may have been instrumental in providing the NIP (and other) stock for Kingston’s plantings at Kingston House in 1865. More history to be delved here! (incidentally John Baker is one of my wife’s ancients in the Adelaide branch of the family and was also related to the Chaffeys of Mildura). |
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