Expert reveals ‘unpopular opinion’ on Adelaide’s iconic jacarandas

They traditionally signal the start of summer, but is it time to say goodbye to our jacaranda-lined streets and replace them with a healthier alternative? Have your say.

Suburban streets and city lanes across Adelaide are famously brought to life as the beautiful November blooms of jacaranda trees line our roads with a spectacular purple haze.

The yearly jacaranda extravaganza is popular with residents and visitors alike but the pretty trees lining our streets with colour don’t appeal to everyone.

Unley locals Emilia, 7, and Penny, 9, love when the purple Jacaranda flowers bloom on their street. Picture: Ben Clark

In fact, Adelaide pollination ecologist Bianca Amato is quoted in the latest Adelaide Park Lands Association newsletter she held an “unpopular opinion” and was not afraid to put it bluntly: “jacarandas suck”.

Ms Amato said while she conceded the trees were “beautiful” she referred to Adelaide’s jacaranda-lined streets as “ecological dead zones”.

“I have non-natives in my garden,” she said.

“I think there can be a happy medium between natives and exotic plants (see my post about lavender).

“However, I think councils have gone a bit jacaranda-mad.

“It’s important we plant a diversity of trees, ensuring our streets aren’t lined with the same species.”

The environmental educator said native eucalyptus trees would be a much better alternative.

She explained jacaranda trees only provide floral resources for only a brief time period of one to two weeks annually, with each flower lasting for just one to three days while native eucalyptus trees in Australia had extended flowering periods.

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She said native pollinators never foraged on jacaranda flowers with European honeybees cover the trees.

Unley resident Natalie Symons and her two daughters Emilia, 7, and Penny, 9, look forward to the Jacaranda trees blooming every year.

“We love the colour of them, they’re everywhere in Unley – in front yards, in parks,” Ms Symons said.

“We don’t have one in our front yard, but we definitely have them on our street.

“I just think they’re so beautiful when they bloom, the colour of them just makes the city look different.

“They’ve been there as long as we’ve lived here, if anything I would want to preserve them – I think it’s good to have a mix of natives and other trees.

“The Queensland gums have been found to be more annoying with their nuts and the mess they make, there could be less of them.”

Adelaide Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith threw her support behind the city’s jacarandas describing them as a “much-loved, attractive street tree”.

“Most people enjoy them and we get plenty of positive feedback when they flower.

“Jacarandas, although exotic, are considered to be well-suited to the Adelaide climate and resilient to expected changes in climate.

“They have the ability to tolerate many of the harsh conditions within our urban setting and provide great canopy cover once established.”

She said the council considered climate resilience, pest and disease resilience, genetic diversity within species ecosystem health and amenity when selecting trees for the city.

“We have just over 53,000 trees, with jacarandas making up 1.78 per cent ... some metropolitan councils have a much higher rate.

Unley City council was contacted for comment.