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<pre>Mike,

First and foremost I am not a horticulturist and the fact that my trees
continue to survive and thrive (mostly) is always a pleasant surprise to me!

I can't fault your simple arithmetic. I am not certain if your estimates
of tree root area are valid, however, if you have overstated the requirement
based on root area it can only help to ensure that you have reserves of
water if rainfall does not measure up to expectations. It certainly
hasn't in the South Burnett for many years. I have seen suggestions that
the root area roughly matches the area shaded by the foliage.

The other problem lies in the timing. In SE Qld we are supposed to get
summer rain but the trees don't want too much at that time of the year.
Our winter is dry and a lot hotter than winters in the Med so I have to
provide quite a lot of irrigation water in the winter. I found that out to
my cost when I split the bark of young trees in cold weather due to having
insufficient water available.

Leaving aside, temporarily, the question of root area may I suggest that you
overlay your rainfall pattern with that of the Med and then make an
allowance for the difference in temperatures. How much allowance? To get
a clear picture of the rainfall pattern I reduced the monthly figures to
percentages of the total. The whole thing seems to be a bit of a guess.
Perhaps someone out there who is much cleverer than me will offer you some
thoughts. I see that Stan Kailis has posted a reply, possibly to you,
which might help.

Finally, what do others in the Hunter recommend?

Yours,
Dan
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