The earths mantle, laid bear in the Tablelands, resists weathering so that only the hardiest of trees like this stunted larch can take root. Weathered peridotite turns a rusty brown as oxygen reacts with iron. Toxic soil minerals, hyperalkaline groundwater and mass wasting of loose gravels along unstable slopes are combined with severe winds and weather to cut back growth as the plant spreads laterally at a rate of mm per year. This centuries old bonsai miniature appears to dwarf background slopes nearly 200 meters in height in this wide angle juxtaposing of scales.