Eucalyptus oreades
| Blue Mountains ash | |
|---|---|
| |
| Eucalyptus oreades at Narrow Neck, Katoomba, Australia | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Myrtales |
| Family: | Myrtaceae |
| Genus: | Eucalyptus |
| Species: | E. oreades
|
| Binomial name | |
| Eucalyptus oreades | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Eucalyptus oreades, commonly known as the Blue Mountains ash, white ash or smooth-barked mountain ash,[2] is a species of medium-sized to tall tree that is native to eastern Australia. It has smooth, powdery whitish bark with rough bark near the base, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and cup-shaped to cylindrical fruit.
Description
Eucalyptus oreades is a tree that typically grows to a height of 40 m (130 ft), with a trunk up to 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) in diameter at chest height, but does not form a
Taxonomy and naming
Eucalyptus oreades was first formally described in 1900 by Richard Thomas Baker in the Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales from specimens Baker and Henry George Smith collected at Adelina Falls near Lawson in the Blue Mountains on 22 April 1899.[7][8] The species name is derived from Oreades, Greek mountains nymphs, referring to the habitat of this species.[2]
Distribution and habitat
Blue Mountains ash occurs from Mittagong in the Southern Highlands north to Binna Burra and Springbrook in far south-eastern Queensland. It is widespread in the Blue Mountains, with a somewhat scattered distribution elsewhere. It is found on sandstone soils in the Blue Mountains, and red clay loams elsewhere.[3] In the Blue Mountains, it is found on steep slopes and ridges, on southern or eastern aspects, from elevations of 600 to 1,200 metres (2,000 to 3,900 ft) and annual rainfall of 900 to 1,400 millimetres (35 to 55 in).[5] The habitat is open eucalypt forest, and associated species include silvertop ash (E. sieberi), narrow-leaved peppermint (E. radiata),[5] broad-leaved peppermint (E. dives), Sydney peppermint (E. piperita), Blaxland's stringybark (E. blaxlandii), snappy gum (E. racemosa), messmate stringybark (E. obliqua), tallowwood (E. microcorys), and New England blackbutt (E. andrewsii).[3]
Ecology
Eucalyptus oreades is unusual for a eucalypt in that it lacks a lignotuber and therefore is sensitive to bushfire, and often succumbs, with recruitment coming from the seeds stored in the canopy seedbank.[3] Mature trees over 20 years of age do have a skirt of thicker corky bark which helps them resist low-intensity fires.[9]
Uses
Very fast growing in cultivation, Eucalyptus oreades is grown in plantations for timber, both in Australia and overseas in New Zealand and South Africa.[10]
Gallery
-
Eucalyptus oreades at Narrow Neck, Katoomba -
Eucalyptus oreades trunk at Katoomba -
Blue Mountains Ash on Mount Banda Banda
References
- ^ a b "Eucalyptus oreades". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ a b c "Eucalyptus oreades". Euclid: Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ ISBN 0-643-06969-0.
- ^ Hill, Ken. "New South Wales Flora Online: Eucalyptus oreades". Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust, Sydney, Australia.
- ^ a b c Benson, Doug; McDougall, Lyn (1998). "Ecology of Sydney plant species:Part 6 Dicotyledon family Myrtaceae" (PDF). Cunninghamia. 5 (4): 809–987. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-06-23.
- ^ Chippendale, George M. "Eucalyptus oreades". Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of the Environment and Energy, Canberra. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ^ "Eucalyptus oreades". APNI. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- . Retrieved 23 November 2019.
- ISBN 0-521-32872-1.
- ISBN 0-85091-213-X.