8S Hart, Eucalypts about Creswtck avd Clnnes. [voi.*"^xxxi'v 



been cuiiimonei m the eaiiier stages of the history of the 

 plains, before even the present imperfect drainage system had 

 been established. On the bluestone there also occur shallow 

 basins of some extent, of which Lake Wendouree, at Ballarat, 

 and the Eglinton Swamps, north of Clunes, may be taken as 

 examples. These will silt up in time or be drained by the 

 cutting of an outlet. The deposits formed in them and ex- 

 posed later may be purely of basaltic origin or in part carried 

 from some other source, but are likely to be mostly clayey. 

 Such an explanation would fit an extensive wet and clayey 

 flat a couple of miles north-w^est of Clunes. 



The Trees oj the Volcanic Country.— The volcanic country 

 may be considered in three parts — the plains about Clunes 

 and to the north and north-west, below^ i,ioo feet elevation ; 

 the plains about North Creswick. at a higher elevation (up to 

 over 1.500 feet) ; and the high volcanic country about Newlyn 

 and Dean, which reaches to elevations at its highest parts of 

 over 2,000 feet, and was forest country in its natural condition. 

 The boundaries are not, of course, sharp. 



The characteristic tree of the plains about and beyond 

 Clunes is Eucalyptus rostrata, the Red Gum. E. leucoxylon. 

 Yellow Gum. and E. hemiphloia. Grey Box, also occur, but aie 

 relatively few in numbers. The Blackwood. Acacia melan- 

 oxvlon, is also present. These trees also occur off the plain in 

 suitable situations in the vicinity. Yellow Gum and Grey Box 

 are evidently much commoner off the plain. 



South of the Stony Creek school. abo\it sewn miles north- 

 west of Clunes, there is a strip of volcanic country at about 

 1,050 feet elevation. The trees on the plain are here all Red 

 Gum on the part which is purely volcanic, but on the north 

 side, where detritus from adjacent bedrock hills has spread 

 out at the edge of the plain, Yellow Gum appears in abundance, 

 and there is a rapid transition as we leave the basaltic soil from 

 purely Red Gum to predominant Yellow Gum, very soon 

 without any Red Cium. On the south side of the same 

 volcanic area Yellow Box is common on the lower slopes of 

 granitic hills, and mixes with the Red Gum towards the valley, 

 but it was not seen on the plain. 1 mention this as Yellow 

 Box appears on the plain at North Creswick ; here it has 

 evidently every opportunity of access from both sides. So 

 also Grey Box is close by on the north without occurring on 

 the basalt here. 



At another place, nearer Clunes. Yellow Gum occurs on tlu 

 plain, but the soil is not purely volcanic, and on wetter ground 

 close by Red Gum occurs without Yellow Gum. But both 

 Yellow Gum and (irey liox do occur in small numbers on 

 undoubted volcanic country with basalt outcrops in the soil. 



