ABSTRACT
When Australia was first settled in the late eighteenth century, eucalypts were used for farm buildings, fencing and fuelwood. The medicinal value of the essential oils extracted from the leaves of some species was also recognised. Elsewhere, eucalypts were regarded as botanical curiosities and were soon cultivated in botanical gardens and private arboreta in Europe. Once in cultivation, the potential of some species to grow rapidly and produce a variety of timber and non-timber forest products was recognised. Their seeds were sought after throughout the world wherever the winter climate was not too severe and they quickly deserved the title ‘the emigrant eucalypts’ coined by Zacharin (1978). Some were planted for their ornamental value, others for land reclamation. Farmers planted them for windbreaks and to produce posts and poles. In countries such as Brazil and South Africa, eucalypts were planted along railway lines to provide fuel for wood-burning locomotives. The reasons for planting eucalypts have changed significantly over time, and the end uses to which the species have been put are diverse. Today, eucalypts provide sawn-timber, plywood, fibreboard, mine props, pulp for paper and rayon, poles, firewood, charcoal, essential oils, honey, and shade and shelter (Hillis and Brown 1978). Less conventional uses include the production of plant growth regulators, tannin extracts, industrial chemical additives, adhesives and fodder additives (Song 1992).
