the.com/ghost gum
a eucalyptus so blindingly white it glows in the outback dark like a held breath
means A type of Australian eucalyptus tree with smooth, strikingly white or pale bark, found across the inland and northern parts of the country.
from A plain English compound — "ghost" for the pale, luminous bark that seems to hover in the dark, and "gum" for the eucalypts, which Australians have called gum trees since the late 18th century for the sticky resin they exude. The name is Australian, born of settlers and travellers struck by trees that glowed against the night; the painter Albert Namatjira made the ghost gums of the Central Australian ranges famous worldwide.
- powder coat
- trunk dusted in fine white powder you can wipe off
- namesake painter
- Albert Namatjira made it famous in watercolor
- sun shield
- white bark reflects fierce heat to survive deserts
- twin loss
- famed Alice Springs pair burned down in 2013
- toxic touch
- leaves can poison nearby plants and grazing stock
ghost gum waterhole — x-ray rock site in west macdonnell ranges, nt, sacred aboriginal location featuring the tree