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Cumberland State Forest, NSW, Old Abandoned Arboretum 3a, 7a, 7b and 7c. VAST-2: Tracking Vegetation Transformation in Australian Landscapes

Created 25/06/2025

Updated 04/03/2026

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The aim of this project is to compile land use and management practices and their observed and measured impacts and effects on vegetation condition. The results provide land managers and researchers with a tool for reporting and monitoring spatial and temporal transformations of Australia’s native vegetated landscapes due to changes in land use and management practices. Following are the details about the Cumberland State Forest, Old Abandoned Arboretum site, NSW, Australia.

Pre-European reference-analogue vegetation: The Cumberland State Forest is part of the Blue Gum High Forest (Daniel Connolly pers comm). It is a tall wet sclerophyll forest found on Wianamatta group Ashfield Shale. Blue Gum High Forest is dominated by Sydney blue gum (Eucalyptus saligna), blackbutt (E. pilularis), and turpentine (Syncarpia glomulifera) with a number of other eucalypts occurring patchily. A sparse open cover of small trees includes a variety of sclerophyllous and mesophyllous species. The ground layer is variable in composition and cover; including ferny, grassy or herbaceous and/or vines and climbers. The characteristics of the ground cover are related to the topgraphic position.

Brief chronology of changes in land use and management:

  • 1788- Area managed by indigenous Darug people
  • 1788-1824: Region explored, un-modified native forest blue gum/ironbark on shale
  • 1825: Parcel selected by Mr Shepherd
  • 1860: Tree cover likely to have been thinned - selective logging for fences and housing
  • 1826-1907: Grazing stock on native pastures
  • 1908: Land parcel cleared and sown to improved pasture, and evidence of chicken farm and fruit orchards
  • 1909-1937: Managed as improved pasture and grazing
  • 1937-38: Purchased by NSW Forestry Commission
  • 1941-42: Remaining native forest trees cleared to establish an arboretum
  • 1943-45: Arboretum planted as a future urban working forest
  • 1946-73: Arboretum managed for education and demonstration - infilling regrowth native forest observed
  • 1974-84: Arboretum increasing managed for recreation - infilling regrowth native forest observed
  • 1985-2012: Area managed for recreation (ex-arboretum and regrowth native forest).

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Additional Info

Field Value
Title Cumberland State Forest, NSW, Old Abandoned Arboretum 3a, 7a, 7b and 7c. VAST-2: Tracking Vegetation Transformation in Australian Landscapes
Language eng
Licence Not Specified
Landing Page https://data.gov.au/data/en/dataset/d3344756-9983-40f5-b9eb-a88f79773682
Contact Point
Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network's Data Discovery
rthackway@netspeed.com.au
Reference Period 01/01/1788 - 31/12/2012
Geospatial Coverage Australia
Data Portal Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network

Data Source

This dataset was originally found on Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network "Cumberland State Forest, NSW, Old Abandoned Arboretum 3a, 7a, 7b and 7c. VAST-2: Tracking Vegetation Transformation in Australian Landscapes". Please visit the source to access the original metadata of the dataset:
https://geonetwork.tern.org.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/csw/dataset/cumberland-state-forest-nsw-old-abandoned-arboretum-3a-7a-7b-and-7c-vast-2-tracking-vegetation-