On Monday, 7 October 2011, wine-making legend Wolf Blass planted a Araucaria cunninghamii, (Hoop pine), in the Central Valley Ceremonial Gardens of the National Arboretum Canberra.
Mr Blass is a regular visitor to the ACT for the Canberra International Riesling Challenge, and his encouragement and expertise has been extremely valuable to our local wine industry.
His career began as a freelance technical adviser to the wine industry in the 1960s when he was able to introduce the concept of quality wines. Over 40 years he has played a significant role in creating a wine industry with an international reputation.
With his career so closely linked to agriculture, it is entirely appropriate that he plant a tree at the Arboretum to incorporate another small step in the mosaic of forests and gardens.
The Central Valley Terraces are reserved for plantings of Araucaria cunninghamii by iconic Australian celebrities.
General Description: Araucaria cunninghamii (Hoop pine)
Native to Australia the Araucaria cunninghamii and commonly known as the ‘Hoop pine’ due to the transverse ridges or ‘hoops’ on it’s bark as it develops with age. The species name of cunninghamii is in honour of the English born botanist and plant collector Allan Cunningham.