Late Autumn in Blackwood Forest Recreation Park

For over 60 years the 21 hectares of land now known as Blackwood Forest Recreation Park was the site of the Government Experimental Orchard, a function that was transferred to Lenswood some years ago.  Thousands of various varieties of fruit trees were grown and studied in the experimental orchard but when it was decommissioned most of the trees were ripped out.  Fortunately, the land which now lies in the suburb of Hawthorndene, was not sold for housing development but was retained as a Forest Reserve and a dedicated band of locals toil to preserve the park and return parts of it to its pre-experimental orchard flora.  Here's a couple of photos I took whilst wandering in the park today - autumn colours of a manchurian pear and a pistachio in the middle of the pine plantation on the eastern side of the Park.  Find out more at the Friends of Blackwood Forest Recreation Park website.