17 Messmate Herb-rich Foothill Forest (EVC 23)

Community structure 

A medium to tall open forest to 25m high with a mixture of eucalypts, usually including Eucalyptus obliqua (Messmate) and E. radiata (Narrow-leaf Peppermint) and sometimes E. baxteri (Brown Stringybark) and E. dives (Broad-leaf Peppermint). A middle storey of large shrubs or understorey trees up to 7m high has a sparser medium shrub layer. A dense and  diverse storey of herbs and grasses characterises this vegetation community. 

Distribution 

Scattered through the Central Highlands on protected slopes and ridges, lower slopes and in gullies from 60-450m, frequently beside damp forest. It occurs on relatively fertile, moderately well-drained soils on an extremely wide range of soil types and in areas of moderate to high rainfall on easterly and southerly aspects. The major occurrences are in a band from Mt Slide to Healesville, following the line of the Yarra River to Yarra Junction. 

Typical suburbs/areas occurring in this EVC are:  Mt. Slide, Toolangi, Chum Creek, Healesville, Mt. Toole-be-wong, Don Valley, Launching Place, Yarra Junction, Gladysdale, Yellingbo, Woori Yallock. 

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