India GO
Tree · Eucalyptus globulus
Tasmanian blue gum
IUCN LC · Least concern
A tall, aromatic tree with peeling bark, brought from Tasmania and planted so widely that it now covers whole hillsides.
How to recognise it
Bark peels in long ribbons off a smooth pale trunk; crushed leaves smell strongly of eucalyptus oil. Plantations stand in even-aged blocks with almost nothing growing underneath.
Protection
Named among the major invasive species of the Nilgiris
Where to see it
Ooty & Coonoor
Blue gum lines the Nilgiri Mountain Railway and covers whole Nilgiri hillsides. Eucalyptus and black wattle are named as the major invasive species of the Nilgiris and have replaced large stretches of native shola and grassland. The railway view that looks like deep forest is largely a plantation, and it is worth knowing which is which.
Doddabetta Peak · Wenlock Downs · Catherine Falls