The Wollemi Pine (Wollemia nobilis) is one of the greatest botanical discoveries of our time. It was found in 1994 by David Noble, an officer with the NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service, in a remote narrow, steep-sided sandstone canyon in the extremely rugged Wollemi National Park, New South Wales.
It is an evergreen tree reaching 25-40 m tall. The bark is very distinctive, dark brown and knobbly, resembling the Coco Pops breakfast cereal. The leaves are flat, 3-8cm long and slightly spiky to the touch.
It is not a true pine but rather is related to Agathis and Araucaria in the family Aracariaceae. Its closest relatives include the Kauri, Hoop, and Bunya pines all of which may be found in the Oasis Valley dry rainforest at the Dubbo Regional Botanic Garden.
Fossils resembling and possibly related to Wollemia are widespread in Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica, but Wollemia nobilis is the sole living member of its genus. The last known fossils of the genus date from approximately 2 million years ago. It is thus described as a living fossil and was certainly around during the time of the dinosaurs.
Fewer than a hundred trees are known to be growing wild. It is very difficult to count them as most trees are multi-stemmed.
Genetic testing has revealed that all the specimens are genetically indistinguishable. This suggests that at one point the wild population was greatly diminished leaving only a few survivors. Lack of genetic variation detrimentally impacts upon the ability of a species to evolve and adapt to changing environmental conditions through natural selection.
To protect the rare wild-growing trees from being damaged or stolen, their location has been kept secret from the public and a successful commercial propagation program instigated to make the plant widely available for purchase.
Sadly, despite all precautions in 2005, the wild-growing trees were found to be infected with Phytophthora cinnamomi. It is suggested that this virulent water mould may have been introduced by unauthorised visitors to the hidden site.
There are two Wollemi Pines in the Dubbo Regional Botanic Garden; one in the Oasis Valley and another in the Sensory Garden.
by Ian McAlister and Karen Hagan