A key to identifying local gum trees
Eucalypts of the Brisbane Region Eucalyptus Buds and Fruit Mangroves to Mountains Wild Plants of Greater Brisbane Flora of SEQ Noosa s Native Plants Field Guide to Eucalypts
Contents 2 3 4 5 6 A. 8 B. 9 C. 13 D. 18 E. 20 F. 23
Gum trees are an important part of Australia s forests, and identify our country as unique. Happy gum-spotting! 2
Some terms used in this key Gumnuts Flowers Leaves 3
Terms relating to gum trees Flower buds Angophoras Lophostemons BUD UMBEL OF FLOWER BUDS Fruits ( gumnuts ) 4
How to use this key Corymbia ptychocarpa Remember, all species vary depending on their genetic makeup and the environmental conditions in which they have lived. There is also variation within each feature of an individual plant depending on environmental factors. All illustrations of flowers, buds and gumnuts are drawn life-size. 5
Start of the key Step 1 bark A Description Trunks smooth with dimples Description Upper trunk smooth; lower half of trunk with rough bark SPOTTED GUMS AND SMOOTH-BARKED APPLES Page BHALF-BARKS 8 Description Trunk mostly smooth Page CGUM-BARKS 9 Page 13 6
Description Bark deeply and vertically furrowed, D IRONBARKS Description bark breaks down to a powder Description bark bark breaks down to a powder and Page EBLOODWOODS AND ROUGH-BARKED APPLES Page 18 20 FSTRINGYBARKS AND FALSE STRINGYBARKS Page 23 7
SPOTTED GUMS AND SMOOTH-BARKED APPLES A 1a. Adult leaves opposite. Rusty Gum / Smooth-barked Apple Angophora leiocarpa A. costata 1b. Adult leaves alternate. Buds with caps... 2 2a. Large / wide adult leaves to Large-leafed Spotted Gum Corymbia henryi 2b. Adult leaves to 18cm x 2.5cm. Spotted Gum Corymbia citriodora C. maculata 8
HALF-BARKS B Lower bark box-barked... 1 Lower bark not box bark... 2 1a. Upper bark shed in long strips to show whitish to light grey smooth bark. Gum-topped Box Eucalyptus mollucana 1b. Upper bark smooth and often brownish / pink or salmon-coloured. Brush Box Lophostemon confertus 9
HALF-BARKS (cont.) B 2a. Lower bark dark with small tile-like pieces; Moreton Bay Ash / Carbeen Corymbia tessellaris 2b. Lower bark not dark and tile-like... 3 3a. Upper bark smooth and grey-green. Cadaghi Corymbia torelliana 10 3b. Smooth bark not greenish... 4
HALF-BARKS (cont.) B 4a. Needle-barked Stringybark Eucalyptus planchoniana 4b. Fibres not splintery and hard when rubbed...5 5a. Rough bark persists high into trunk and branches. Large bunches of buds and gumnuts. Gympie Messmate Eucalyptus cloeziana 11
HALF-BARKS (cont.) B 5b. Persistent rough bark usually less than half the trunk and branches. Blackbutt Eucalyptus pilularis 12
GUM-BARKS C 1a. and becomes indented but with no juicy green tissue....2 1b. hard, and cuts to reveal moist green tissue....3 2a. Flower buds small, in groups of 8 to 15, not ridged, Gumnuts 3 4mm long. Small-fruited Grey Gum Eucalyptus propinqua 2b. Flower buds in groups of 7...4 3a. Adult leaves different hue above and below...5 3b. Adult leaves same hue above and below...7 4a. Flower buds, with long stems and pointed caps. Large-fruited Grey Gum Eucalyptus biturbinata E. punctata 13
GUM-BARKS (cont.) C 4b. Flower buds ridged. Gumnuts 4 5mm long. Mountain Grey Gum Eucalyptus major 5a. Small tree or mallee valves below rim. Plunket Mallee Eucalyptus curtisii 5b. Trunk straight and tall, protruding valves...6 6a. broad valves protruding and incurved. Flooded / Rose Gum Eucalyptus grandis 14
GUM-BARKS (cont.) C 6b. valves with thin pointed tips protruding and erect and out-curved. Sydney Blue Gum Eucalyptus saligna 7a. thin, dark zigzag scribbles. Scribbly Gum Eucalyptus racemosa 7b. Grey-white or whitish trunk without scribbles....8 15
GUM-BARKS (cont.) C 8a. Bark white and powdery, Adult leaves often oval, Bud caps hemispherical. White Gum Eucalyptus platyphylla E. alba 8b. Most of trunk and branches white, grey, dark-grey or blue-grey. Bud caps long. Leaves grey-green / blue-green...9 9a. Gumnuts often angular or ribbed, valves very protruding. Orange Gum / Bancroft s Red Gum Eucalyptus bancroftii 16 9b. new bark never bright orange 10
GUM-BARKS (cont.) C 10a. Glossy / shiny smooth bark, Queensland Blue Gum (Eucalyptus tereticornis) 10b. dull grey. narrow weeping foliage. regrowth leaves narrow. Narrow-leafed Red Gum Eucalyptus seeana 17
IRONBARKS D 1a. Leaves opposite, stem-clasping and without stalks Silver-leaved Ironbark Eucalyptus melanophloia 1b. Leaves alternate, with distinct stalk (stem)...2 2a. Juvenile and regrowth leaves less than 1.5cm wide. Narrow-leafed Ironbark Eucalyptus crebra 18 2b. Juvenile and regrowth leaves more than 1.5cm wide...3
IRONBARKS (cont.) D 3a. Adult leaves to about 2cm wide. Grey Ironbark Eucalytpus siderophloia E. drepanophylla 3b. Adult leaves 3 5cm wide, Broad-leafed Ironbark 19
E BLOODWOODS AND ROUGH-BARKED APPLES 1a. Gumnuts very large Leaves very large Swamp Bloodwood Corymbia ptychocarpa 1b. Gumnuts less than 2cm long......2 2a. Mature leaves alternate. Buds with caps...3 2b. Mature leaves in opposite pairs. Buds without caps...4 3a....5 3b. Bark in coarse, soft spongy long slabs with deep, vertical furrows. Bud caps long and beaked. Valves usually joined across the opening. Swamp Mahogany Eucalyptus robusta 20
E BLOODWOODS AND ROUGH-BARKED APPLES (cont.) 4a. Leaves (2 6cm wide) without stems Broad-leafed Apple Angophora subvelutina 4b. Leaves (1 4cm wide) with stems Smudgee Angophora woodsiana 5a. Pink Bloodwood Corymbia intermedia 21
E BLOODWOODS AND ROUGH-BARKED APPLES (cont.) 5b....6 6a. Gumnuts large Red Bloodwood Corymbia gummifera 6b. Gumnuts small Brown Bloodwoood Corymbia trachyphloia 22
STRINGYBARKS AND FALSE STRINGYBARKS F 1a. Fruit composed of about 7 gumnuts fused together...9 1b. Gumnuts not fused together...2 2a. Bark papery Buds without caps. 5 distinct petals. Swamp Box Lophostemon suaveolens 2b. Flakes not papery....3 3a. Leaves darker green above, paler below...4 3b. Leaves with both sides the same colour...5 4a. Bark soft spongy rubs valves usually joined across the opening. Swamp Mahogany Eucalyptus robusta 23
STRINGYBARKS AND FALSE STRINGYBARKS (cont.) F 4b. Gumnuts with valves not joined...6 5a. Buds large (2 3cm long). Gumnuts ridged and large Needle-barked Stringybark Eucalyptus Eucalypt planchoniana 5b. Buds and gumnuts less than 1.5cm long... 7 6a. Buds long (about 2cm) and pointed. valves much protruding. Red Stringybark Eucalyptus resinifera 24
STRINGYBARKS AND FALSE STRINGYBARKS (cont.) F 6b. Buds less than 1cm long,...8 7a. Gumnuts with stalk; narrow rim. Juvenile and regrowth leaves to 10cm broad. Broad-leaved Mahogany (Eucalyptus carnea) 7b. Gumnuts without stalks (or very short stalks); wide rim; rim bright red when fresh. Regrowth shoots hairy. White Stringybark / Tindale s Stringybark Eucalytpus tindaliae 25
STRINGYBARKS AND FALSE STRINGYBARKS (cont.) F 8a. Outer bark with small circular swellings with small central holes. Seed yellow-brown. Tallowwood Eucalyptus microcorys 8b. Seed red-brown. White Mahogany / Yellow Stringybark Eucalyptus acmenoides 9a. compound fruit, Turpentine Syncarpia glomulifera 26
NOTES
NOTES
NOTES
30 1855-03