Yesterday, I went with Norm to the Koala Hospital tree plantation where we grown, not only local food trees but trees for koalas who come in to the hospital some distance away in other home ranges. Norm usually does one day a week at the plantation under the guidence of the manager. The plantation not only has acres of very old trees but also rows and rows of trees from seedlings, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 year old. There we pruned dead wood and new shoots that will choked healthier limbs to encourage growth at the lower part of the tree so leaf collectors can’t climb. The plantation is where most of the source of fresh leaf is collected every morning of the year for the ICU, rehabilitating and the permanant koalas that cannot be released into the wild because of blindness, severe injuries and organ damaged caused by diseases among other health issues. It was a beautiful sunny morning without being to hot. I hope to learn more from the manager, and Norm, about the different species of gum trees so I can recognise which leaf is which when I feed the koalas. We try and give the koalas 3 varieties every day but those special change slightly each day. The trip over to the north shore of the river is quite a pleasant drive. I hope to take more photos of the fauna and flora in the area next time.

Archived in: Retirement