Tree wealth: the incredible discovery of Australian eucalyptus trees that ‘produce’ gold

Photo: Reproduction/Mysteries of the world

You’ve probably heard the famous phrase “money doesn’t grow on trees”. That’s true, but after a discovery made in Australia about a eucalyptus tree, we bet you’ll think twice before using it.

Eucalyptus: the tree with hidden treasure

Eucalyptus trees are well known for having therapeutic properties and being used for medicinal purposes. Its gray-green and oval leaves are widely used in decorations, bringing a high aesthetic standard.

However, behind these common uses of the plant, a very curious secret hides. As it turns out, these famous trees are actually a veritable treasure map of nature. Believe it or not, they can guide us to gold.

Australian scientists from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) have made a shocking discovery about a phenomenon occurring in the Kalgoorlie region of Western Australia.

According to scientists, eucalyptus trees are capable of extracting small golden particles from the soil through their root system, causing these particles to reach their leaves and branches.

But how does this work? As if they were hydraulic pumps, the roots of these plants penetrate great depths of soil. Thus, they are able to absorb water and the tiny gold particles found there.

The minerals and compounds found in gold can be toxic to plants. Therefore, this type of tree has a defense mechanism.

Instead of leaving all of this stored in its roots, they send the gold particles to their leaves and branches, where the tree can then eject them, scattering the particles back into the soil.

The gold particles found in eucalyptus foliage act as a kind of marker and deposits of gold, which are often buried several meters deep in the ground, would make the search to find them much more difficult if it weren’t for help. of our plant friends.

According to the magazine Nature Communicationsthis discovery presents a new method for locating elusive gold deposits in challenging terrain.

Golden trees: the new ecological approach

The research was led by CSIRO geochemist Mel Lintern, who revealed more details about the “gold deposits”.

“Now, we are trying to direct the search to the most difficult ones, which are buried under tens of meters of river sediments and sand dunes. And trees offer us a method for doing this.”

To carry out the tests, scientists used a machine called an Australian synchrotron. Using x-rays, she can analyze the matter and confirm whether or not there is the presence of gold in the leaves, branches and bark of eucalyptus trees.

But if you’ve already gotten excited and thought about buying a ticket to Australia to collect all that gold, we need to tell you that getting rich with it is not very viable. Lintern explains:

“It would take 500 trees growing in a field to extract enough gold from the trees themselves to make a ring.”

Now you know: the next time you come across a eucalyptus tree, it’s worth checking it out to see if you don’t find some golden secret hidden in its leaves.

However, according to the scientists, the ultimate goal of the research is not to extract the gold from the trees, but to use them as natural indicators of underlying gold deposits. They believe this can help exploration efforts in an ecological and economical way, causing minimal damage to the environment.