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Great
Outdoors
Favourites
at Kings Park
Boab
and Grass Trees
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Boab
Trees at Kings Park
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Take
a detour off the Law Walk in Kings Park to view the wondrous ancient
Boab trees. What do these Boab trees look like? They have bulbous
trunks that are disproportionate to the rest of their structure.
They are also referred to as bottle trees and are a relative of
the African Adansonia species of Baobabs. What a tongue twister!
These
particular Boab trees featured in the photo to the right were transported
3000 kms from the Kimberley region, north of Western Australia all
the way to Kings Park. They are mainly found in the Kimberley region
and some parts of the Northern Territory.
They
are used by the Aboriginals for a variety of things including food,
shelter, and medicinal purposes such as for the treatment of gastric
problems.
Today,
in Western Australia, Boab trees are grown for commercial use and
have been introduced for sale at fresh food markets and for use
by restaurants in Perth.
Opportunities
have transformed the harvesting of these humble Boabs for their
tubers and leaves into an emerging gourmet food. Fancy a pickled
Boab for lunch? They are sold in a variety of interesting forms
including the use of the tubers for chutneys and pickles, Boab fruit
for jams, and fresh leaves that can be used in salads.
Grass
Trees
Native
Grass trees can be viewed at the Balga Lookout from the LotteryWest
Federation Walkway. A species of the Grass tree are also referred
to by the Noongars as Balga trees. The Grass tree has used by the
Aboriginals for a myriad of purposes including to make fishing spears,
for materials to build a shelter, as a sweet drink from the flowers,
and to make glue. The glue is made from a combination of its resin,
kangaroo droppings and charcoal.
After
a fire, grass trees are renowned for producing an abundance of seeds
and flowers. Grass trees grow very slowly, only around a few centimetres
each year.
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Grass
trees at Kings Park
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How
to get there:
Boab
Trees
Follow
instructions to get to the Law Walk
and you will see the Boab trees by taking a slight detour from the
Law Walk.
Grass
Trees
Follow instructions to get to the LotteryWest
Federation Walkway and view the Grass trees from the Balga Lookout.
Other
Favourites at Kings Park:
LotteryWest
Federation Walkway
Jacobs
Ladder
Law
Walk
Coming
Up:
Bush
trails in Kings Park
Go
back to Kings Park main page.
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