3rd TinT archive – Aug 2024 on

big old wilga in dead box host Gali gurranaa camp - Very old TinT

the wilga guest has outcompeted & killed the box host over time

within 50 yrs or so the wilga will be dead too - not as long lived as eucalypts

old peach bush in dead box Gali gurranaa camp

there were 2 guests in this box originally - one is dead

possibly a dead branch off the Peach bush? Not suckered, planted

another Peach bush in box but lower down the box trunk

the box tree crotch is at the bottom of an old scar I think

the peach bush has possibly suckered in here

this box has been cut down with a chainsaw not steel axe

the guest is this case is spiny fan flower aka Scaevola spinescens

chainsaws were in widespread use in the 1950s & 60s

hollow box trees are unsuitable for fence posts so who cut this?

this box tree host has also been chainsaw lopped

I think the guest may be a peach bush but not 100% sure

This box tree host has broken off at the base but not that long ago

same guest as the last TinT, Im guessing is a goat eaten Peach bush

this box trunk is also not suitable for a fence post and is chainsaw cut

the guest is a budda - Eremophila mitchellii - not too common

Not palatable for livestock so the goats have left it alone

In the same area is this very old dead wilga in a low live box crotch

the wilga guest has probably died of natural causes ie old age

plenty of bark means it hasnt been dead for decades

Unseen & unmissed - the culture behind these trees unprotected

this small wilga guest however is doing just fine thankyou

Its midtree crotch protects it from goats at Galigurranaa

size does not equal age - different growing conditions = different growth rates

same again here - this wilga guest did not come down in the last shower

too much shade in this box crotch restricts the size.

a few mtrs away is the dead twin - live box host but dead wilga guest

these box branches on this TinT have been cut with a stone axe

Peach bush in live box GG camp. Suckered in or planted?

the guest is growing in an old scar which creates a typical crotch

plenty of peach bush TinTs all around Cumborah

this is another peach bush TinT but both the host & guest are dead

the old bimblebox host has a coolamon on the other side

here is the dead peach bush guest. Think this TinT went over in a storm

this is one of those rare TinTs that is also a ringtree - GG camp

this is a very old bimblebox host but unfortunately the guest is dead

hard to tell what the guest was but most are Pimelea microcephelas in ringtrees

another peach bush in dead box host - again hard to know how it got there

close up view doesnt really help - need some research into Peach bush

I dont know about this guest? If its a bimblebox it would be a reshoot

looks more like a coolabah which would make it a TinT

another peach bush in box TinT but I think the guest is dying GG camp

It may just be goat attack - Peach bush is very palatable.

another Peach bush TinT about 50 mtrs away - box host is dead

more likely planted as the guest is in a stone axe cut stump

This is a wild/ native jasmine VinT (Vine in Tree) at GG camp

They are not counted as TinTs but I believe many are cultural plantings

Peach bush suckered into pine stump - not true TinT

the sandhills around the wells are full of suckering peach bush

this is a NEW GUEST SPECIES. Known as Eumong or Cooba

growing in a dead blackbox or coolabah along the Ginghet

The scientific name of this guest tree is Acacia stenophylla

This is a double dead further along the Ginghet - Wilga in Black box

Im assuming the dead host is a black box because its too wet for bimblebox

and wilga doesnt grow in coolabah hosts for whatever reason

the host is also scarred. This wilga guest was killed by artificially high water levels

the 2nd eumong in blackbox or coolabah is also a double dead.

Im not familiar with eumong so it may revive - not the host tho

Eumong are common along the waterways in western NSW

NEW 50:50 tree I found recently in the McDonalds sandhills.

half redgum & half bimblebox - its hard to tell host from guest.

This is the reverse side - 2 trees joined at the base at the camp entrance

Q; why did the old clever people join trees together A; because they could

this is the original 50:50 tree at this camp - about 200 metres away

here is the join/ junction of the 2 species in the original

another strange combo is the wilga in whitewood

this is the 3rd time Ive seen a whitewood act as host rather than well

will be interesting to see if the wilga is still alive next drought

further afield this lovely TinT is found between Gilgandra & Gulargambone

twin kurrajongs in yellow box (I think) along the Castlereagh Hway

Gulargambone is the new TinT hotspot with Sandra Winsor turning them up there

here she is with a big rosewood in huge box at Widgeewoo

We drove past this TinT a month or so ago without noticing it

Sandra & her friend Roger were showing me other CMTs at the time

there's a dead section of wood alongside the rosewood that may have been a 2nd guest?

this stunning old rosewood in box grows in the garden at Gulargambone station

Sandra lived here for years & never noticed there were 2 trees in 1

settlers built their houses at Aboriginal camps years ago

& the Aboriginal paths (songlines) became the roads - simple

tiny Capparis something in big blackbox about 20 mtrs from the huge wilga TinT

The guest would be bumble or nepine or possibly Capparis loranthifolia

huge old wilga in dead eucalypt just east of the Ginghet in the GNR

Im going to assume the dead host is a black box - Eucalyptus largiflorens

because 1- the nearby eucalypts are blackbox 2-too low & swampy for bimblebox

3-wilgas dont live in coolabahs. The logic of deduction my dear Watson ...

not far from that big old wilga TinT is this small wilga in bimblebox

Im not saying its as old as the big one but its older than it looks

here is another 1 living in this same patch of scrub just up from the Ginghet

neither bimblebox nor wilga cope with prolonged wet root systems

this wilga guest in the same area is bigger-because the conditions are better

the scrub may be less dense so there is more sun, water & nutrients

It their proximity to other TinTs & CMTs & good water thats the key

further south along the Ginghet is a small whitewood in box TinT

cant remember if the host is a blackbox or bimblebox

whitewoods are versatile - can be host/ guest/ hold water/ make rings

further along is this interesting double guest in black box TinT

the closest guest is a gnarly old currant bush, behind is a Pimelea microcephala

pimelea is a mighty medicinal & is often found as a TinT guest

currant bush is a common guest too - its the combination that unusual!

this combination is the most common - wilga & thorny saltbush

the host, I think is a bimblebox, but could be a black box as well

this doesnt count as a TinT because the guests are a vine & a shrub

wilga in bimblebox TinT between St George & Dirranbandi, QLD

This is Kamilaroi/ Gomeroi country so TinTs are cultural creations

there is a small whitewood sharing this crotch as well

there will be plenty more TinTs in Kamilaroi country, southern QLD

nearby is a small whitewood in what looks like an axe cut crotch

there are similar sized whitewoods on the ground so may be natural

leafless cherry growing in a coolabah on the warrambool flood plains

Mirrii (Exocarpus aphyllus) is a root parasite & is low down the trunk in this case

I recognise small mirrii by the vertical bands on the older stems

Also in McDonalds paddock but living near the sandy camps is the wilga TinT

older than it looks the wilga guest is growing in a stone axe cut box crotch

living near the scattered artefact plain beside the big warrambool

this big supplejack in box is in a sandhill on the Walgett-Lightning ridge Rd

growing in the centre of a multitrunked box tree it looks at home

there will be other TinTs around here, I just haven't had time to look

maybe next winter? I will need to find out who owns this land first.

this old thorny saltbush in box lives in this sandhill as well

BinTs & VinTs arent counted but in my mind I know who put it there

way up the very northern end of Kamilaroi country is this budda in box

on a sandhill between St George & Dirranbandi with 3 other TinTs

there will be more here too & the property owner is interested & cooperative

this is a rosewood in box from this sandhill where the Carbeen tree live

again this rosewood has seen more summers than its size suggests

there is only a k or so between all 4 TinTs in this area - Qld

there is an empty box tree crotch here as well - the guest has died I suppose

here is the 2nd big wilga in box from this camp between St George & Dirranbandi QLD

I dont know why the Kamilaroi clans here chose to dig for water?

the Balonne river is only a few Ks away? Maybe that was Bigambul land?

this wilga in box TinT seems the same age as the other one from here

back in NSW in the sanctuary sandhill there is an old peach bush in box

there is a lot of peach bush here (Ehretia salinga) among the redgums

this one may have suckered into the middle of this old box tree

this lovely old wilga in box lives at the sanctuary too.

I would call this a 50:50 tree as the box-wilga junction is so low

the insertion of the wilga so low has caused 2 epicormic shoots

I dont know why I hadnt seen this TinT before - its a very special place

up away from the sunken sand is another small mirrii TinT

again you can see the vertical stripes on this root parasite guest

this branch has been cut with a stone axe & the mirrii trimmed up by goats

another Gingie songline TinT in Bonbon paddock near road

yes I know its small but rosewoods come & go - the Houdini of the guest trees

I have looked here before because there are many scarred trees at this place

The other thing about rosewoods is they are very difficult to germinate

another small guest I should have seen before on Wailwun country

Black box (Eucalyptus largiflorens) is the 2nd most common host

this currant bush in black box is near a swamp with 3 wilga TinTs

10 mts away is the Prickly fan flower/ Scaevola spinecens/ Murrin Murrin BinT

This is prob the biggest TinT in existence if you combine guest & host circumference

'living its best life' up in the ridges of Cumborah - gali gurranaa camp

no mob. service so no geodata ( Lat. Long.) so will be hard to find again

the Kamilaroi mob & their kin were Australia's original tree changers

just hope there's are no more mega fires coming out of Parks & Wildlife

the most common guest in this place is the peach bush

peach bush suckers thru the old bimblebox scartrees up here

like a metastasizing tumour. Somebody had to plant it originally but

some of these peach bush TinTs seem to live in isolation

If the peach bush had suckered in here where has it come from?

there is no ground dwelling peach bush cluster anywhere near

this peach bush must have been planted in this bimblebox not suckered in

these 3 peach bush TinTs may be connected to each other

this ground dwelling peach bush is dead but the tree dwelling one is alive

here you can see it emerging high up in the neighbouring box

was it planted up there or did it sucker up thru the hollow bimblebox?

about 20 mtrs away is another scarred tree riddled with peach bush

peach bush leaves drop off when its dry & are palatable to livestock

so how did this peach bush get inside here - naturally or human assist.

the next peach bush TinT is about 10 mtrs further on

again living high up in the box tree away from nibbling goats

Are these 3 TinTs connected undergroud & genetically identical?

another peach bush in box but away on its own

I thought it was a budda guest at first as the leaves are similar

also away from any conventional living peach bush trees

this is a wilga in a totally debarked bimblebox with reshoots

the epicormic shoots have grown up around the trunk to save the tree

wilga trees do not sucker - was this pay back for the bark?

if so the wilga guest & the reshoots would be the same age

another peach bush TinT but the guest(s) are dead

I think the dead guests are branches of a single peach bush tree

could be separate guests but less likely - no nearby peach bush

the box host is alive but struggling - should do better without competition

this is a big double scarred box with a supplejack guest

the supplejack has been layered into one of the scars I think

It could have climbed in itself as supplejacks start off life as climbers

but it seems to have preferred to live in the boxtree not beside

this is a wilga living in the space left by the removal of box trunk

a very cosy crotch but I expect the guest gets trimmed up by goats

I expect the wilga guest to be the same age as the epicormic shoots

plenty of trimmed up hopbush in this country - strong medicinal

Peach bush suckered up thru box in Telinebone

here you can see it emerging out thru a broken scar

a few meters away is another high Peach bush in box TinT

peach bush is flowering now & you can see it up above the wild Orange

this is another Peach bush in box TinT but up near Cumborah this time

the box tree host appears to be dead but sometimes they reshoot

the guest peach bush looks quite old - possibly its killed its host

close to Gingie rd at this huge GG camp is an old wilga in dead box

again, I wonder did the wilga guest kill the bimblebox host?

the old dead box is carrying some scars as well

people have been living at Gali gurranaa for a very long time!

this tiny wilga is growing in a small old box near the Gingie rd as well

there is a big wilga growing right next to this TinT as you can see

wilga doesnt really sucker so Im assuming they are separate individuals?

more suckering peach bush in a big, scarred box at GG camp

I think there are at least 5 TinTs like this involving big box scars up there

how did the Peach bush gut inside the scarred hosts?

although this wilga is not completely surrounded by its box host ..

Im calling it a TinT. Firstly the wilga seems to have died of old age

Secondly the box host is only living on thru its epicormic shoot

Both host & guest are very old but the combo is still intact - GG camp

nearby is a much younger wilga in box TinT. Not only is the wilga small

but the stump is cut with a steel axe & the epicormic shoots smallish

There maybe a couple of centuries between this wilga TinT & the last one

also in this place there is a high Currant bush in a dead scarred box

this is unusually high for a guest and makes this TinT easy to spot

I think the old scarred box is dead but the Currant bush guest is fine

this is a BinT (Bush in Tree) but probably natural

the bush/burr has been there awhile but I dont know the longevity of the species

we may never know what the Wailwan ancestors intended here?

it looks like they were protecting this old wilga in blackbox TinT

Pine stakes held with wire & chicken wire around the wilga guest

why were they protecting this TinT beside a deep black box swamp?

the wilga has grown over the chicken wire so this 'barricade' been in place for a long time

there are other TinTs & Ringtrees at this swamp in Marungle paddock

the use of 'colonial' materials to guard a spiritual tree has never been found before ..

across the swamp from the guarded TinT is another wilga in blackbox

This wilga? guest looks small & I wonder how it will survive the inundation?

another wilga in blackbox TinT at this old camp - with fungus!

only a medium size wilga guest but growing conditions vary

as Ive said before, size DOES NOT = age. The fungus is the important thing

Aboriginal people in this area were growing fungus on trees for some reason

next swamp along in Marungle paddock is another TinT cluster

this is a small whitewood in black box that also appears young

whether the whitewood guest is a reshoot or just stunted I dunno

this small wilga is living in a multitrunked blackbox not far away

I think the dead cross trunk was cut & fell into, not out of the tree

I think it was cut with a stone axe just here where the wilga emerges

this wilga in black box is much bigger than the others in this swamp

Although bigger the wilga guest may be the same age as others

close up you can see a black box trunk has been removed as well

this is a supplejack growing in a bimble box. nearby

there has been a bimblebox trunk removed here too

is the guest a replacement for the trunk? Pure permaculture

the next 3 wilga in black box TinTs are about 20 mtrs apart

this one lives on the edges of the swamp and is much taller

the guest wilga's leaves are more wilted because its sunnier here

this wilga guest is hanging out the side of the blackbox to catch the rays

guest trees survive anyway they can given their unusual circumstances

this blackbox crotch is more open so the wilga guest is more centered

3 small wilga TinTs close together at the southern side of the swamp

on the northern side of the swamp is a very small wilga in blackbox

on the northern side of the swamp

again this wilga in blackbox is taller because its on the outer edge of the swamp

the wilga guest is snuggled in between the 4 blackbox trunks

the crotch was created by the removal of the central trunk I think

also on the northside of the swamp is another wilga in blackbox

very tedious all these wilga in black box wailwan TinTs

the wilga's trunk looks older than many of the others I think

this is a peach bush in a bimblebox on the eastern side of this swamp

the peach bush is only just inside its host - borderline TinT at best

This magnificent Wilga TinT has grown in a 15" rainfall zone. HOW ?

dunno what happened to the old box host but its demise may benefit the wilga guest

the wilga would have been planted a metre or so up in the box crotch

exposed roots like this indicate old TinTs at an old Yuwaalayaay camp

unnoticed & uncelebrated except by me - WHERE ARE THE ACADEMICS?

Now this nearby TinT may not look as awesome but its unique

here we have a wilga growing in a rosewood - A FIRST TIME HOST!

Rosewood/ Boonary/ Bunbarr/ Alectryon oleifolius are very tough trees

the skills required to grow this wilga-rosewood combo are unparalleled

amazingly Rosewood, Whitewood & Belah can be both guests & hosts

At this same WilbyWilby camp but across the road is this dead guest in box

if I had to guess I would say this is a dead wilga guest?

someone has been timber cutting recently & hasnt noticed it

nearby on the eastern side of the road is a budda + grass in box

budda (Eremophila mitchellii) isnt a common guest but not rare either

budda leaves are used for smoking ceremonies out here

this is a peach bush in an old box with 2 crotches available

I dont know if the peach bush was planted there or has suckered in

I think planted as the host crotch has been very manipulated

the peach bush guest seems to have suckered up the box trunk

firstly, there up peach bush suckers all around the old box tree

secondly, this is a chainsaw cut stump crotch so not that old

this pine guest is also small but in my experience they often are

I think its been growing at a very slow rate in this box crotch for a long time

pine trees are not common guests either and are not long lived

of all the TinTs at this WilbyWilby camp this double dead is my favourite

the dead guest emerges from 2 holes, a scar & a broken off trunk

the dead guest could be a wilga or whitewood or rosewood

the dead box host has another big scar that adds to the awesomness

what a mad sad country this is that fails to appreciate it's cultural heritage

this is a supplejack in a dead eucalypt but I have no location data

there is some dieback showing the stop/ start nature of TinTs

here is a suckering peach bush TinT along the Bokhara warrambool

i doubt very much this is cultural - the guest has suckered in there

here we have a whitewood growing in a box on the warrambool

this has also died back & reshot - tough being a guest in 15" ave. rainfall zone

this is the biggest guest I saw along the Bokhara warrambool

this is a cultural TinT with the peach bush been planted in there

here is where the guest emerges from the old bimblebox host

this small currant bush in box has only become visible now the saltbush has died

living in the Cumbul sandhills I saw it years ago & lost track of it

I think this crotch has been used a few times over the years ...

meanwhile back on the Bokhara this is a double TinT

the little wilga guest is very stressed and would benefit from rain

the other guest is native jasmine but its hard to see in this photo

this is also a double guest TinT but the wilga is tiny & pigweed is temporary

the interesting thing is host which is bent over like a shelter tree

This camp is closer to the Narran river - Yuwaalaraay/ Euahlayi land

this is a rosewood TinT nearby at the same Narran paleochannel camp

again the bimblebox host is large while the rosewood guest is small

SMALL but OLD - I cant emphasise that enough

also at this camp are some peach bush TinTs that may or may not be cultural

the crotch looks man-made but peach bush can sucker up anywhere

this little peach bush probably got is this box crotch naturally

here is another peach bush TinT on the Bokhara warrambool

only 1 peach bush guest as the other is a bimblebox reshoot.

nearby is this Capparis TinT - probably bumble, maybe nepine.

very hard to distinguish between the 2 Capparis species when small

I could just make out a suckering peach bush in box in this patch of scrub

fence was too tight & I was mustering so this magnified pic is all I could get

this a whitewood in box in a sunken sandhill off the Bokhara warrambool

I expected more TinTs here but suspect there is no underground water

no semi-permanent water - no TinTs is the general rule

The other general rule is the guests can bide their time - not growing, not dying

another impossible solid host TinT on the big Bimber billabong here

this is a currant bush in rosewood TinT - Capparis anomala in Alectryon oleifolius

these are the toughest of the tough scrub trees that live out here

for one to living within the other is inconceivable yet here it is

due to academic apathy in this country we will never how they did this

small wilga in box in the Ginghet reserve found by Sandra Winsor

Sandra (pictured) & daughter Tilly on the Billybingbone rd project

Sandra with a smallish wilga in blackbox TinT off Billybingbone rd

This TinT is near the Warren rd turn off at the start of Billybingbone rd

Sandra & Tilly with nearby butterbush/ Gumbie gumbie in blackbox

there are at least of this same combo TinT along Billybingbone rd

This double TinT has been recorded before & is near the Ginghet bridge

This small rosewood in box TinT is beside the Cumberdoon way

the scarface has fallen out of the tree & is leaning on the trunk

another TinT with F.fomentrius growing on the host

the guest is new -Peach bush - & its on the Gingie rd songline near Cumborah

here is the Tinder fungus - always low down the trunk on TinTs

I found this peach bush TinT yesterday while looking for another

the dead box host is totally infested with peach bush

living in the huge Gali gurranaa camp up towards Cumborah

this is another old peach bush in box TinT in the same area

the host has 2 scars - the guest emerges from this faceless one

there is shallow coolamon above that scar as well

nearby on the Cumborah slopes is this old wilga in dead box TinT

the guest has been here a long time & probably killed its host

the smaller wilga on the ground probably germinated from the guest wilga

this is one of my favorite guests - Pimelea microcephala

string made from this bush is used for acupressure

its common on the flats but not around the Cumborah ridges

meanwhile over on the Ginget floodplains is another homestead Gumbie Gumbie TinT

this wailwun TinT is more a Tree thru Tree but I will give it the benefit of the doubt

not far from the Ginghet BFC is this small wilga in box TinT

the box stumps are stone axe cut even though the guest is small

across the Ginghet is a wilga in an old box with lignotuber base

the wilga guest is tall as it searches for light in the woodlands

this old TinT is just above the Ginghet floodline near the BFC

less than 50 mts away is a boobialla growing in a coolabah

hard to tell the host species but the dead leaves in the crotch look narrow

I think the boobialla guest has previously suffered some dieback

this is a whitewood in coolabah TinT on the banks of the Marra ck

There has been an old camp near the Billybingbone bridge

coolabah & whitewood leaves are the same colour but different shape

The Marra is more river-like than the Ginghet so the might be Barwon TinTs too?

TinTs are often found in pairs & here it is about 50 mts away

The coolabah host is dead in this case but gust is doing fine

I dunno if the whitewood guest has killed its host or not

back around Cumborah (euahlayi/ yuwaalayay) country is a wilga TinT

the bimblebox host has had the central trunk removed to make this crotch

These TinTs in the Cumborah ridges are older than they appear

this peach bush in box is also older as there is a lot of dieback

you can see how old the peach bush trunk looks inside the crotch

This TinT looks very similar to another Ive uploaded in the area?

this wilga? guest is tiny but within grazing height of sheep/ goats

the box host is also scarred so its a genuine TinT

nearby is another peach bush guest suffering from dieback

dieback caused by over grazing from feral goats in their 000's

this old dead box tree has nepine growing out of it

whereas this old dead crotch has goat grazed peach bush

This peach bush is growing inside a culturally burnt box stump

the charcoal patches on the stump shows signs of rubbing

and the stump has been cut with a stone axe

this small bushy wilga in box is living in an interesting crotch too

2 of the host's epicormic shoots have been cut off for whatever purpose?

I think this wilga guest is older than it looks as is often the case

another peach bush in box in this place near the homestead

the peach bush is growing out of the old box scar as you can see

This TinT has been here awhile, dont know why I havent seen it before

Im not counting this as a TinT because the peach bush has suckered up

not far away is what I think is a Boobialla in bimblebox

when guests have been chewed up by bugs or goats its hard to tell

Boobialla isnt a common guest but Ive seen a few over the years

another peach bush in box with one of the epicormic shoots removed

the guest is small but the host is multitrunked and old

may have suckered in there when the central trunk fell out?

this peach bush guest is small too, a more recent camp here I think

about a K from that TinT cluster in the same paddock is a TinT with the lot.

the currant bush guest is about 4 M up and has died back somewhat

I hadnt seen this one before as its so high up - who would have believed it?

this crazy TinT is also a ringtree as you can see from this angle

Full-face scarred box ringtree with currant bush guest at the top ... wtf?

meanwhile back on wailwun country just off Billybingbone rd ...

another wilga in box with central trunk removed or fallen out?

another wilga in box with central trunk removed or fallen out?

that has bent the guest? Surrounded by large epicormic shoots

further east this unknown guest has been manipulated into the box crotch

this is where this unknown guest came from originally

as you can see its been living in the old box for a long time

possibly dying of old age? Either a whitewood, rosewood or wilga guest

this is a carbon copy of the box/ supplejack 50:50 tree a couple of Ks west

This 50:50 TinT would have to have been created by the same person

As the box host grows it would pull the supplejack up too

also just off Billybingbone rd is this small rosewood in box

rosewoods/ boonery are difficult to germinate from seed

not for the old clever people but, rosewood TinTs are quite common

This ringtree with guest or TinT with ring is simply outrageous

the old rosewood has 2 branches joined together to make a big ring

they are joined here as you can see by tying them together for a long time

the adjacent currant bush has had 2 branches pulled thru the rosewood

only one has survived & has been incorporated into the rosewood host

this branch didnt "take" for some reason - very ambitious but.

the resulting currant bush in rosewood ring TinT is quite amazing

this bushy wilga guest must like heights - Im learning to look up now

Ive been in this Stud paddock swamp a few times & missed this Tint

this high wilga is much older than its size suggests

I also missed this gargaloo vine living in a rosewood.

rosewoods are acting as hosts more than any other non-eucalypt

another TinT in this swamp is this supplejack in a dead stump

the stump has been cut on the slant - more of a wailwan thing than gomileroi?

supplejacks often climb trees naturally but are also found as guests

YAY - dont you just love a new guest! Wild plum (Santalum lanceolatum)

Freddie Walford used to pick the black berries for us when ripe

although the trunk is small in diameter its a mature guest tree

This is a satellite camp in the ridges 5 miles from Cumborah

nearby is this very old wilga that has broken out of the box tree host.

I know its a TinT as the guest is fully enclosed by the remains of the host

from this angle you see one of the host's epicormic shoots

the original trunk is almost totally gone. Another TinT treasure!

This is a TTT (Tree Thru Tree) possibly cultural. Not layered as its wilga

on the other side of the road is this high Peach bush in box

Peach bush is very palatable to goats so only the high guests survive

I think the ground growing & low peach bush guests have been eaten

the central trunk with unknown guest has been cut with a chainsaw

possibly a boobialla? or some variety of the Myoporum species

this old peach bush in box is not doing well. Very palatable to goats

its still alive as you can see by these tiny shoots along the trunk

only peach bush in high crotches are out of the reach of goats

this TinT is old but the peach bush guest probably wont survive

this Kurrajong in box however will be around for a long time to come

the kurrajong is living in the original box trunk surrounded by epicormic shoots

Ive only ever seen 1 kurrajong guest before & its living in a Yellow box

on the Burrendong way in Wiradjuri country. Kurrajong guests are rare!

this wilga with climbing saltbush may be a naturally occurring guest

the host box branch has a crack not a true crotch. Also the guest is young looking

dead wilga in straggly box just east of the Ginghet on Ingalala

bimblebox dont like water logging so this TinT is up on red country

however the artificial Burrendong dam flood of 2022 may have killed the guest

there's another wilga in box TinT about 20 metres away also dead

its unlikely they both the wilga guests died around the same time

too much water released for too long kept the Ginghet artificially flooded

this old wilga TinT on the other side of Billybingbone rd is fine

well not fine as the box tree host is dead but from natural causes

the wilga is very old & has killed its host over time I think

you can tell its old by the deeply furrowed bark & crotch overlap

This small wilga in BFC TinT showed me how much I dont know

I thought wilga was never planted in coolabahs? Is it natural?

I also thought these really old BFCs didnt have guests - wrong

the guest/ host ages dont match by a long shot - 1000 yrs or so!

guess who also lives on this BFC turned TinT ? Our fungus friend

this bimblebox host has a strip of bark removed in a spiral

the peach bush guest is very high at the end of this spiral

spirals are symbolic of the cycle of life as people pass to the skycamp

this spiral is shallow so not the result of lightning but deliberately carved

this is a special memorial for some v.important person I think

There are many TinTs in this place like this Peach bush in box

the branchy guest emerges from an old debarked trunk

its hard to see half hidden behind a wilga tree as well

nearby is this wilga in box that also got branches coming out everywhere

the wilga guest appears to be middle sized & middle aged

I dunno why these Tints are clustered so close together?

this box host has a lovely full faced scar typical of the Gali gurranaar scars

the peach bush guest is dead but of what i dont know

scarred trees that are also TinTs are relatively common in the ridges

not far away is this wilga guest in multitrunked box host

the host is also scarred. I've labelled the TinT so you can see whats what

the wilga guest looks a similar age to the last one but size is deceiving

this lovely low peach box in box lives in this neighbourhood too

the peach bush is thriving here and is big enough to be out of reach of feral goats

the box host is quite old as you can see by its blown base lignotuber

this supplejack is having a bet each way - not a TinT but stealing nutrients

the 'piping' of eucalypts by termites enriches the soil so the supplejack helps itself

this wilga in box TinT is unusual because there are 2 wilga guests

the box tree has broken open revealing 2 separate wilga root systems

1 guest appears older than the other supporting the idea that wilga guests were sown by seed(s)

this is the remaining scar but I think with 2 guests there 2 scars here - awesome!

this old split box has a dead peach bush in the centre - GG

the guest has been dead awhile now but peach bush has that 'habit'

Im getting proficient at identifying dead guests as Ive seen a few now

even this double-dead is easy to ID. The host is definitely bimblebox

here is the root end you can see the host was 'chocka' with guest

Im saying the dead guest is a wilga because of its shape

our old friend the unidentified fungi is here too & dead as well

another interesting TinT in the ridges - a rare budda in dead box

budda (Eremophila mitchellii) is a relatively rare guest esp. in the ridges

fully mature despite its size - this guest has been here a long time

sort of a TinT - peach bush in box scar

technically this lantern bush is a guest as well although its not native

an accidental BinT - not cultural but natural. Still needs to be recorded in the interests of science

this bumble in box is cultural without a doubt in the world

the bumble (Capparis mitchellii) has been living in this old box a long time

its very tall for a bumble (wild orange) on its quest for light

also fighting for trunk space with its host - a tough gig for a guest

I couldnt remove this stick - it may be a dead guest but I wont be calling it

no mistaking this high peach bush although the scar looks natural

most scars on TinTs are cultural but this one is very long & thin

still its a very long way for the peach bush to sucker up by itself?

this fallen trunk looks culturally scarred & opens a large crotch

the guest peach bush is dead but there are clay oven balls in the crotch

these didnt get there by themselves either - burning to weaken the host?

this dead peach bush TinT is very similar to the last one

this stump has been debarked & forms a large crotch

here is the peach bush root system - seems to have run out of soil

the peach bush guest is alive in this case - btw all are in the ridges at GG

the box host is dead in this case and the crotch fits the size of the guest

the dead box host is remarkably small. Nothing natural about this GG TinT

another dead peach bush guest in live box scartree Gali gurranaar

this dead guest was much bigger so may have been there longer

big scars with dead peach bush guests are everywhere here

this is a wilga in box ground level TinT not that far from the road

the box crotch has broken away over time

leaving the guest surrounded by epicormic shoots

this lovely old wilga in box TinT is right on a fence line at GG

most fencelines are cleared back 20 mts each side these days

luckily this is an old fenceline because this is an old TinT GG

here is another live peach bush in broken scarred box

the broken trunk protects the peach bush from goats

20 metres away is this dead peach bush in box you can see in the foreground

actually on closer inspection this may be a dead wilga guest?

wilga wood looks like bleached bone when its been dead awhile

there is a wilga growing inside this old Gali gurranaa box tree

you can see from this angle there has been some guest dieback

I think the host has suffered damage that has impacted the guest

this peach bush in box not far away has also suffered some dieback

the dead branch/trunk shown here hides the living trunk behind

double dead in a ghost town - the living trees are grey mulga

the old box tree host has been cut down with a stone axe as you can see

pot plant style - the guest was probably a peach bush I expect

here is another Gali gurranaa camp dead peach bush in live box

the dead peach bush guest is very twisted up & contorted

I think it was quite an old tree before it gave up the ghost ...

this bumble in box makes a nice change from the wilga & PB TinTs

the box host is leaning out to catch the sun but the bumble grows straight up

so many scarred trees & so many TinTs = many people living here

this whitewood in box TinT is naturally occurring I think

the scar is a branch fall tear & the branch is still on the ground have no

this old box in Priest is riddled with supplejack vine

instead of growing on the outside this supplejack's internal

and pops out of every old coolamon+axe cut scar on the hollow box host

this huge box in the Cumborah ridges has 2 guests

the one on the left is a rosewood & the one on the right is a wilga

the wilga has split into 2 but one side has died back in the struggle for survival

its a tough ask for trees to grow inside other trees esp. if its a double

this guest didnt make it but its also possible it died of old age.

I think the dead guest is a wilga & they dont live as long as eucalypts

sometimes the host is lightly burned to weaken its defences

you can see both the guest's roots & charcoal from the fire here

this combo is too ambiguous to be classified as a TinT

the smaller wilga looks inside the box boundaries but the bigger one isnt

this dead wilga TinT has been living a long time in the ridges

the box host is still living despite the wilga breaking open its trunk

However, this battle for dominance has taken its toll on both trees

God knows how long this combo has lived here - soon it will disintegrate

this old scarred box has a straggly goat nibbled peach bush guest

there is a lignotuber at the base where the peach bush emerges

this combo living in the ridges is also very old and the scar very large

the wilga guest here may be small but would also be heavily gazed

the bushy shape & mature leaves indicate its older than it looks

this combo may be protected from land clearing but not livestock

away from the ridges on Wailwan country is this little wilga in Black box

the guest looks much younger but black box may not be as hospitable?

there's no black box or coolabah in the ridges as there is no clay or swamps

nearby in the same swamp is a bigger wilga in bimble box I think

not a significant TinT because its not living in a significant swamp

Im not sure what that white thing is in this pic?

this big wilga in box stump is to be found near Billybingbone rd

I dont think this wilga killed its host. I think it's a pot plant style TinT

I think the host has been cut off with a stone axe to make a memorial

the guest has simply outgrown its wooden pot over time - much time

back & front views of what will be a layered in currant bush TinT

prototype TinTs are rare as they were created over 60 years ago

probably an old wilga TinT in Priest but too ambiguous to call

no ambiguity with this old currant bush in very old box in the ridges

the currant bush root is all twisted up around the curled-up box kernel

the currant bush has been living in the old trunk for a long long time

I dunno why the currant bush is white as the guest is healthy?

this supplejack guest may have suckered into the box tree crotch

the guest looks small but it has been broken/ eaten off a few times

the dead tree in front looks like a supplejack & may be the guest's parent

this peach bush guest doesnt look very old either?

I would suspect it suckered its way in too but the box host has a 'ring'

only a prototype 'ring' but bimblebox dont inosculate easily

nearby is a split box with 2 separate crotches filled with baby wilgas

these guest germinants are definitely wilga because I plucked 1 & smelt it

But how did the seed get there? Poked in by ancestors or fallen off adjacent wilga?

this dragon lizard on the TinT may know but he's not saying ...

this boxtree host is huge & has outlived the dead guest by ages

just above the junction between host & dead guest is a burnt stump

these 2 views show the burnt branch? clearly. So obviously cultural it hurts my heart to look at it

will this extraordinary TinT be ignored like the other 1200+ in these archives?

this guest is snuggled in between the scar & the epicormic shoots

the scar takes up 3/4 of the lower box hence all the epicormic shoots

the wilga guest doesn't look very big but both guest & host are struggling

back at home Im revisiting old camps & turning up new TinTs like this

I dont know how I missed this pair of supplejack in box TinTs in Priest

these stumps have all been cut with a stone axe at different times

this supplejack in box nearby has been broken off by cattle

how to estimate the age of the guest when it keeps getting set back?

the crotch itself is very old but the guests at the camp are mostly small

this guest looks like it was seeded by the overhanging wilga tree

WRONG - the guest is a rosewood that is very difficult to grow from seed

this close by guest is dead so difficult to see unless TinT hunting

i dont know what it was but it may reemerge in the future possibly

this rosewood in flattened base coolabah lives in the big warrambool

the host's base has been flattened out in an interesting way

to prepare for the young rosewood guest or to encircle an existing rosewood?

its still a TinT in my book (website) by whatever method used

this one over on the Ginghet however does not make the grade

it looks as if the dead standing tree used to be inside the fallen host but not definitely

Not far away is another TinT with a dead guest that I think is a wilga

the dead guest is definitely inside and was probably killed by flooding

the host has been burnt at some stage to weaken it for the wilga guest perhaps

this double dead TinT is similar - the guest a wilga & the host a blackbox

interestingly the host has also been burnt - coincidence or plan?

the artificially high Ginghet in 2022 killed hundreds of wilga trees

the empty host in the foreground of the floodplain may have been a TinT in the past

another example of a burnt host but the eucalypt is bigger & guest is smaller

Eremophila deserti is common on the Ginghet nature reserve

aka Ellangowan poison bush or turkey bush this plant was thought medicinal

dead rosewood (I think) in box near the Ginghet on Ingalala

there are many TinTs near the bridge over the Ginghet on BBB rd

rosewoods are tough trees but obviously not tough enough here

this looks like a TinT but I think its just a heavily modified coolabah

more of an old dead reshoot - along the Big warrambool

big old dead wilga in big old live box in the ridges round Cumborah

the host has a deep trunk scar as well probably related to guest insertion

there was another scar but the face has been pushed out by the growing wilga

I suspect the wilga has died of old age which makes this TinT at least 200 yrs old

the wilga will fall out over time & no one will know it's story ...

another wilga in box combo but both guest & host are younger

this wilga would be older than it looks but not nearly as old as the last

here is another old TinT at this camp but the guest is a bumble

the bumble/ Wild orange isnt big but its trunk looks quite aged

I would guess its somewhere between the last 2 guests in age?

the box host is large & appears to have some cultural scarring

nearby is this very tall Gumbie gumbie/ butter bush TinT

the guest has to reach up for light but I think the host is helping

As we all know Gumbie gumbie is a medicinal tree & available online

the trunk is mature & the crotch is closed indicating advanced age

also in this place is a wilga living in a large open box crotch

despite its relatively small size the guest is fully enclosed by the host

as you can see this is a true TinT and a very old one at that!

I think half the old box has collapsed in a storm leaving the TinT vulnerable

another wilga in box TinT here at the other end of its life span

only the stone axe cut crotch gives us some hint of its possible age

still in the ridges is an old dead peach bush in dead box trunk

the bark on dead wilga & dead peach bush is very similar

but the peach bush is more sticky in habit and often smaller

the peach bush roots are convoluted like it's struggled to penetrate the soil

this bumble in box not far away also looks like its struggling

again, this guest is fully mature & would be bearing fruit

there appears to be a leaf disease - bumble seem prone to fungal infections

the stone axe cut trunk is another cultural give away apart from being a TinT

scars are also a dead giveaway of the cultural origins of TinTs

as if the fact that trees dont live in other trees in semi-arid zones wasnt enough

Bill Gammage & 5 other octogenarians have just been to visit the TinTs

so where the bloody hell are you? The TinTs will still be here but I wont ...

This is Bill & Roger getting a closer look at a possible TinTinT

we thought it may be a TinTinT but the suspect leaves were mistletoe

also came across this stump in Priest paddock with Sandra & Holly

the box has broken off years ago & sprouted wilga & mallee/ shrubby rice-flower

its a camp thing, ie loading up stumps with seeds - give it a try someday

even farming paddocks here like Mooroo have TinTs around the edges

this currant bush in rosewood belongs in a subset of non-eucalypt hosted TinTs

you wouldnt notice from this angle but many gilgais were temporary camps

both these species are very long lived tucked away in farming refuges

whoops .. nearly forgot one from the massive Gali gurranaa camp

tiny high wilga in box - but dont underestimate the age of the little fellas!

2 views of a thorny saltbush in belah at warrambool camp

Rhagodia spinescens in box at neighbour's warrambool camp

these are not natural I JUST KNOW IT. Both leaves & berries are edible

easier to establish than TinTs. Not all but SOME BinTs are ANTHROPOLOGICAL

stunning big old dead wilga in box beside miner's road in the ridges

I think the wilga guest has died of old age as there is no damage to old box host

The wilga will slowly decay & fall out of its crotch eventually

& no one will know it ever was - a loss for Indig culture & humanity

at the other end of the TinT scale is this tiny wilga & bush in small box

but I think it has been modified to drain into the little wilga crotch

this Cumborah country is chocka with TinTs but no surface water

this peach bush TinT is also fire scarred - see last blog

the peach bush guest is old but still hanging in there for now at least

this is another nearby peach tree infested scarred box tree

I think the peach tree in the base is continually grazed by goats

its unusual for a TinT to also have a fallen scarred split trunk

This peach bush in box TinT is more typical & has been around awhile

hard to estimate the age of this common combo but could be very old

unobtrusive unseen & unacknowledged. Something wrong in 'Academia'

another peach bush infested box tree but the guest has died

the guest looks alive in this pic but that's just a neighboring wilga

I dont know why the internal guest has died - peach bush is pretty tough

finally, a wilga TinT but I dont know why the guest is relatively small

another of those older than it looks scenarios - stunted by circumstances

TinT hunting is full of contradictions & surprises - love it!

back to the peach bush in box combo that may still be the most common

this combo looks as old as it should. Timeless, beautiful & undisturbed

classic peach bush in box TinT in the ridges around Cumborah

these ground level TinT are controversial as they look more natural

but if you look closely you can see the rim of the old decayed trunk

completely surrounding the enclosed wilga guest. TREE in TREE

this big old host is a designer box with mistletoe decoration

the wilga guest is small & goat trimmed - older than it appears

its a lovely big scartree in its own right even without being a TinT

I was out in Cumbul scouting where to take Rebel & Russell when I found this TinT

the supplejack guest is growing out of an old high box tree branch

hard to see but an interesting TinT in a small paddock of TinTs

another tricky little TinT nearby - small but old wilga in box in Cumbul

this wilga won't grow because the dorpers/ goats will keep eating it

this messy looking combo is a big wilga in an old spreading box on the GNR

here is the junction where the wilga has pushed out low boxtree trunks

the wilga has partially grown out of the box crotch having a bet each way

not far from here in what used to be my great uncle's place "Minoru"

is a tall belah in a burnt eucalypt stump - coolabah I expect

I think the internal burning is to get the belah established

20 meters away is this old currant bush in coolabah TinT

the coolabah is verybig & the old currant bush has 2 exits

but the most significant thing is the live fungus in the host /guest junction

If not proof that this fungus is involved in TinT creation its compelling evidence!

this fungus is growing a K away in box & belah but Ive not seen it in coolabah or currant bush before

Just when you think you've found them all, a brand new Warrambool TinT

I found this wilga in box TinT mustering & suspect underground water

There is a bumble ring & a sandy depression with multiple ironwoods

the central crotch is surrounded by multiple trunks - preplanned I expect

TinT without the T. The guest tree has died leaving a colonised crotch

I think the coolabah has just grown around the whitewood here?

but in this instance, I think goats have chewed off the wilga guest

this wilga guest is small too but biding its time in the black box host

im finding more big hosts with little guests along the Ginghet now

the adjacent wilga has branches cut -scrubcutting or cultural?

this small boobialla in black box or coolabah also has a low offshoot

I think this is a "pointer" which shows the direction to take

the guest may be stunted or a reshoot of a previous boobialla that failed

this tiny whitewood guest may be also be a reshoot or a natural TinT?

the host is huge so if the guest is naturally occurring it wont last long

conversely this Eumong has lasted a very long time indeed

did they plant it in a living coolabah I wonder & it won out?

Ive seen a few of these TinTs now & they are all in dead hosts I think

this TinT looked like a big rosewood in bimblebox from the distance

but the true guest is actually a wilga - the Ginghet flood plains

from this angle you can see the rosewood has grown thru the center

this may only be a branch off the main wilga that has reached out for light

not far away in this mature Butterbush/ Gumbie gumbie in box

technically this TinT is a double with a tiny rosewood in there as well

the bimblebox crotch has been opened up possibly to allow more light

Gumby gumby is a well known medicinal & not common along the Ginghet

20 meters away is this big low bumble in spread coolabah crotch

the bumble/ wild orange is another popular guest tree

again the central crotch has been spread open deliberately I think

the scar may come from a ringbarking attempt as it doesnt look cultural

wilgas are almost never found in coolabahs but this TinT is a double

both guests have been in this Ingalala Ginghet camp for a long time

you can see the wilga root is actually bigger than its trunk in this pic

the BFC host is old & gnarly & its thanks to Joy Dare we can see this magnificent combo