When all else is finished…
September 16, 2008 by Lorraine Edmunds
Filed under: Landscapes
They say when the Dead Finish is ‘finished’ we’re all finished!
Dead Finish or Acacia tetragonophylla was one of several species that regenerated spectacularly across Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary following the record wet years of the mid 1970s. It is a slow growing, drought-tolerant plant that can thrive on the skeletal soils of the arid zone. During prolonged dry periods, Dead Finish will drop most of its spiny phyllodes and plants may appear to be dead.
Dead Finish is a favourite ’bird bush’. Its dense branches and prickly foliage provide excellent refuge for Zebra finches and other small bush birds. The stiff four-sided, needle-like leaves or phyllodes end in a very sharp point creating a formidable barrier to predators. The curling ‘Capital C ‘ pod, tightly pinched between each seed, is a useful identification feature for this ubiquitous arid country plant.
Bundles of phyllodes spring from the branches of what looked like a dead Dead Finish plant.
For Aboriginals of arid Australia, Dead Finish is a ‘one-stop shop’. This versatile wattle produces bandages, cough medicine, an antiseptic for treating open sores and wounds, an edible paste, damper flour and hard timber for implements and tools. Across arid Australia Dead Finish was commonly used to treat warts. Dry phyllodes were arranged around the edge and on top of the wart, the ends broken off leaving the tips in place. Within three days the wart would wither and drop.
For the Adnyamathanha people of the Flinders Ranges, the fine-grained, wood of the vara-vada bush was used to make boomerangs. Vara-vada branches were also used in burial ceremonies. Although many Dead Finish plants have perished in recent years and some are struggling to survive, others are flowering. It seems we aren’t all finished just yet!
Extract from Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary’s From the ARK e-newsletter – reprinted with permission
The When all else is finished… by Lorraine Edmunds, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 Australia License.
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I remember Doug saying once that it’s name was from the fact that if, when out mustering on a motorbike, you ran into one of these prickly buggers that was it for you…a dead finish!