Australian and Israeli science - eucalyptus trees, bush fires, honey and swamps.

 When you travel in Israel nowadays, it is difficult to believe that 150 years ago the south was total desert (60% of Israel’s land surface). Only a small number of trees grew in the south; the trees that had once grown were either taken for wood, eaten by sheep and goats, or died in the droughts. The other 40% of the country, in the north, was covered with swamps ..which were worse than the desert. In the late C19th the swamps caused malaria and prevented people from inhabiting the north of the Promised Land.

The eucalyptus tree was first introduced from Australia to other parts of the world by the botanist Sir Joseph Banks, on Captain Cook’s expedition in 1770. But the eucalyptus was not brought to Israel from Australia until the late C19th. The hope was that this tree would dry the swamps that were causing so much trouble to the settlers.

Although the eucalyptus trees easily adjusted to the Israeli swamps and grew rapidly, they were unsuccessful in actually drying them. But at least the trees created better air in the area and were found useful in other ways. The eucalyptus forests brought bees to the area and improved the honey industry; the wood was used for various purposes, such as railway sleepers and telephone poles.

The eucalyptus trees adjusted well to Israel, from very humid to semi-desert areas, and were easily acclimated. Today eucalyptus trees are found all over Israel in forests, along roads, and in urban and other populated areas.

Eucalyptus trees in the Hula Valley in Israel.

Australians could easily believe this photo was actually taken in Australia.

Reforestation of Israel’s drought-ridden lands has always been of interest to Australia. How could new areas of the Negev be able to flourish and grow, specifically through the conservat­ion projects undertaken jointly by Aust­ralian Jewish National Fund ((JNF) and by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation of Australia? Since 1917 & JNF Australia’s first project of a forest to hon­our the return­ing forces after World War One, the Australian group has engaged in a range of projects that have helped to create an improved lifestyle for rural Israelis. And during the British Mandate, the British took even more Australian eucalyptus trees into Israel.

The Israeli-Australian connection has continued this century. Euc­alyptus researchers and growers from around the world attended a training course in 2008 on eucalyptus forestry; their particular focus were two invasive gall wasps and their natural enemies. After two years the solution was developed cooperatively through the Australian National Insect Collection at CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Indus­t­rial Research Organisation) and Israeli scient­ists. It HAD to be fool-proof. There are 700 types of eucalyptus in Israel and JNF distributes 200,000 saplings a year free of charge for forestation and bee grazing.

Israel may be a desert, going six months of the year without rain, but local bee populations are thriving and honey production rising thanks to a new flowering tree brought over from Australia. It is not a good time for honeybee populations worldwide just now, yet Israel has 450 bee­-keepers in the country who manufacture 3,600 tons of honey annually for local consumption and for export. But rain is critical. Like other desert coun­tries, the majority of native plants and flowers blossom in Israel only once a year after the winter rains.

After research, the correct eucalyptus plant and bees were chosen.
The bees began to pollinate the flowers while collecting nectar to be made into honey.
Since there are more trees with nectar available, the output of honey is rising.

Of course eucalyptus trees can withstand long periods of drought – they were from Australia! But a new environmental crisis arose in December 2010. With no rainfall for the previous eight months, the Israeli forests became extremely dry, and along with the strong winds and heat, bush fires quickly got out of control. The fire in Israel’s Mt Carmel region caused the death of 44 citizens and destroyed 5000 hectares of forest land. It had been the worst fire to take place in Israel’s national history, and destroyed nearly double the amount that 30 years of intermittent fires in the Carmel had caused. It will take at least 50 years to replant all of the trees that were lost and to bring the Carmel Forest close to its former condition.

Eucalypts are well adapted for periodic fires; in fact most species are dependent on fires for spread and regeneration. So it is not surprising that the fire-loving eucalypts account for some 70% of Australian forests, reg­en­erating quickly every summer. But in this Mt Carmel bushfire crisis, Australia could do nothing to save Israeli lives or forests :( The countries that did send fire fighting aircraft were Greece, Turkey, Netherlands, Switzerland, Russia and Cyprus.

One other agricultural connection between Israel and Australia is worth mentioning. The Arava is Israel’s long, eastern valley between the Dead Sea and Eilat, and although it is mainly desert, 90% of its residents are successful farmers! Some Arava farmers specialise in organic farming and soil-free cultivation, in cooperation with farmers across the nearby Jordanian border. Sharing knowledge is important here; the local government maintains a training centre that welcomes students from around the world.

For example dirty solar panels produce less electricity, but the need to use water for cleaning those panels in dry regions makes even a clean power project less eco-friendly. Solar panels could lose from 10-35% of electricity production over time if they remain unwashed So the newest robots (by Ecoppia) dry-clean each panel, making for more efficient energy production. As agricultural research stations work to constantly upgrade the area’s produce, teams of Australians will spend time in the Arava to find solutions to the challenges of desert agriculture.