Hazelnut - thanks for posting that article and the additional links. I may have to add another book to my reading list. Toni - will definitely check out the video when I have a bit of time to absorb. Metrosideros - sad story about the demise and effects. When all I've seen of HI is basically travel video, it seems that some of the real stories are "hidden". I do watch a tv series - "Gardening: Australia" - that touches on a lot of this forum's subject matter and opened my eyes to ill-conceived common practices here. I live in a small subdivision carved out of an oak/hickory area and my neighbors gang up on me to remove trees in my yard. How someone can call a native shag bark hickory a "weed" tree is beyond me. I do see the man-made damage to the woods all around me and it's very sad.
