The gum leaf: a healer, a cleaner, and source of fuel

Once again, as I stroll with our four-legged friends in the neighbourhood, I spot these beautiful gumtree leaves dangling over the footpath.
They are a species native to Australia, providing a natural eucalyptus oil, often used as a healing and cleaning remedy. Also highly flammable, which is hugely problematic when bush fires during the heat of the Australian summers.