Forest Red Gum
Eucalyptus tereticornis

Family: Myrtaceae

What it is like

Eucalyptus tereticornis is an evergreen Tree growing to 35 m (114ft) by 20 m (65ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 9. The flowers are pollinated by Bees, Insects. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist or wet soil. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Height (m): 35

Where it is found

Found principally in open-forest formation with a number of other eucalypts and on river flats or hill slopes with alluvial or sandy to gravelly soils.

Australia - Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, north to Papua New Guinea.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Asia, Australia, East Africa, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea*, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

How it is used

Food

Rating: 2

The tree is said to produce a nutritious, sweet substance that falls from the leaves like manna. The roots can be used by travellers in the desert to provide good drinking water.

Manna: this is a sweet substance that exudes naturally from certain plants, usually from the stems.

Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.

Medicine

Rating: 2

The resin is astringent. A decoction of the leaf serves to reduce fever and alleviates pulmonary problems. The essential oil (from the leaves?) has shown antibacterial and antifungal activities, and in-vivo analgesic, muscle-relaxant and anti-inflammatory effects in rats and mice.

Other

Rating: 3

Agroforestry Uses: Planted in shelter-belts as a windbreak and for shade. It is a suitable species for reforestation programmes. The trees are also used in the restoration and immobilization of dunes, to control erosion by wind, and as hedges. They can be planted along the banks of rivers to stabilize the soil. The tree is a major source of pollen and nectar, producing a caramel-flavoured honey. Other Uses The wood contains 6 - 12% tannin, and the bark 3 - 15%. The leaves are one of the sources of the essential oil 'eucalypt oil', and the principal component of the oil in the leaf is cineole (45%). The oil yield percentage by fresh weight is 0.9 - 1.4%. The leaves yield 0.45 - 3.4% essential oil. The essential oil has shown insecticidal activity. The wood contains 0.5% essential oil. Kino (a red substance resembling resin) is obtained from the tree. The general colour is brown, and it can readily be reduced to a fairly fine powder between the fingers. It forms a light reddish-brown turbid liquid, leaving a muddy-looking residue of a salmon colour, evidently composed of finely divided particles of resin, wood, and a gelatinous substance. Rich in tannins, it can be used medicinally and for tanning. The heartwood is pale to dark red, and fairly well demarcated from the grey to cream-coloured sapwood. The grain is wavy or interlocked, texture even and fairly fine. The wood has a density of 660?1060 kg/m_ at 12% moisture content, but wood from plantations often has a lower density than that from natural stands. The wood has a strong tendency to warp during drying. It is not stable in service. The wood is strong, tough and hard. The wood saws well and works well with hand and machine tools, but it splits easily and the presence of interlocked grain makes it somewhat difficult to finish. It holds nails well and glues well. The wood is durable and has good weathering and wearing properties. In Australia the wood is one of the most resistant to marine borerattack, but it failed after 2.5 - 10 years at the Pacific coast of the United States. The sapwood is susceptible to Lyctusborers. The heartwood is resistant to impregnation with preservatives, the sapwood is permeable The wood is red, hard, heavy, strong, very durable, uniform in texture and has an interlocked grain, which makes it difficult to work. It is resistant to marine borer and is widely used as a construction and mining timber. It is also used for poles, stakes, boxwoods, bridge timber, railway sleepers and wharves. It is suitable for posts of all sizes, flooring, vehicle bodies, furniture, handles, ladders, sporting goods, agricultural implements, veneer, plywood, core stock, matches, joinery, vats, toys, novelties, turnery and wood-wool. In India, the most important use of this species is for its good quality pulp and paper. The strength properties of the paper improve after the tree reaches 9 years of age, but the dark colour of the heartwood, in comparison with some other Eucalyptus species, is a disadvantage. It is also used for hardboard, fibreboard and particleboard. A popular and widely used firewood and charcoal. The energy value of the wood is17,750?22,000 kJ/kg.

Industrial Crop: Biomass: Three broad categories: bamboos, resprouting woody plants, and giant grasses. uses include: protein, materials (paper, building materials, fibers, biochar etc.), chemicals (biobased chemicals), energy - biofuels

Management: Coppice: Cut to the ground repeatedly - resprouting vigorously. Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.

Minor Global Crop: These crops are already grown or traded around the world, but on a smaller scale than the global perennial staple and industrial crops, The annual value of a minor global crop is under $1 billion US. Examples include shea, carob, Brazil nuts and fibers such as ramie and sisal.

Other Systems: SRC: Short-rotation coppice.

Management: Coppice: Cut to the ground repeatedly - resprouting vigorously. Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Management: Standard: Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.

Other Systems: SRC: Short-rotation coppice.

Carbon Farming: Plants that can be a critical part of the solution to climate problems. The Carbon Farming Solution - Eric Toensmeier.

How it is grown

This species has the widest latitudinal distribution of any species in the genus, occurring over a wide range of climatic conditions from temperate to tropical. Found naturally at elevations from sea level to 1,800 metres. It grows in areas where the mean annual precipitation ranges from 500 - 2,000mm and the dry season may extend for 7 months, and has been planted successfully in areas where there can be as much as 3,500mm of rain. The mean annual temperature ranges from 16 - 25°c, with a mean maximum temperature of the warmest month of around 27°c and a mean minimum of the coolest month of 7°c. Where it grows naturally, it may tolerate 0 - 15 frosts a year. In some areas where it has been planted, the tree has survived occasional frosts to -7°c. Grows wild in soils that are usually not acidic, are rather rich, moist, alluvial, sandy loams and gravels. It prefers a pH in the range 6.5 - 7.5. Established plants have considerable resistance to drought, and can also tolerate occasional waterlogging. A fast-growing tree, when planted on favourable sites trees have attained a height of 35 metres in 10 years, even on poorer sites they have managed 15 - 18 metres. Yields of wood depend primarily upon humidity. They are highest when trees are grown on the borders of canals and under conditions of irrigation. In irrigated plantations in Africa under good conditions, annual yields of 20 - 25 cubic metres per hectare during the first 15 years have been obtained; the yield then decreases to 10 - 15 cubic metres unless the trees are coppiced. On poor sites in Uruguay annual yields of only 6 cubic metres per hectare were achieved in a 16 year rotation. When grown in plantations, it begins to produce seed 3 - 6 years after establishment. For a Eucalypt, this species is considered relatively fire resistant. The species coppices vigorously: a 99% rate has been reported from Congo. Eucalyptus species have not adopted a deciduous habit and continue to grow until it is too cold for them to do so. This makes them more susceptible to damage from sudden cold snaps. If temperature fluctuations are more gradual, as in a woodland for example, the plants have the opportunity to stop growing and become dormant, thus making them more cold resistant. A deep mulch around the roots to prevent the soil from freezing also helps the trees to survive cold conditions. The members of this genus are remarkably adaptable however, there can be a dramatic increase in the hardiness of subsequent generations from the seed of survivors growing in temperate zones. Eucalyptus monocultures are an environmental disaster, they are voracious, allelopathic and encourage the worst possible attitudes to land use and conservation.

Propagating it: Seed - no pre-treatment is required. Surface sow in a sunny position and make sure the compost is not allowed to dry out. Species that come from high altitudes appreciate 6 - 8 weeks cold stratification at 2?c. Germination is good and uniform, with 30 - 70% within 14-30 days. Pot up the seedlings into individual pots as soon as the second set of seed leaves has developed, if left longer than this they might not move well. The seedlings are ready for planting in the field when they are 25 - 30 cm tall, usually after 3 - 4 months. The seed has a long viability. Vegetative propagation has been carried out successfully from ligno-tuberous tissue, from branch cuttings from 2 - 3 year-old saplings, and from epicormic shoots from older trees. In Congo, 60% rooting success has been obtained from cuttings.

Best place to grow:

Habit: Tree

Hardiness: 9-12

Growth: Fast

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Moist, wet

Things to keep in mind

Citronellal, an essential oil found in most Eucalyptus species is reported to be mutagenic when used in isolation. In large doses, oil of eucalyptus, like so many essential oils has caused fatalities from intestinal irritation. Death is reported from ingestion of 4 - 24 ml of essential oils, but recoveries are also reported for the same amount. Symptoms include gastroenteric burning and irritation, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, oxygen deficiency, weakness, dizziness, stupor, difficult respiration, delirium, paralysis, convulsions, and death, usually due to respiratory failure.

Its other names

Local names

Forest red gum, blue gum, flooded gum, grey gum, mountain gum, Queensland blue gum, red gum, bastard box, red ironbark, red irongum and slaty gum

Synonyms

Eucalyptus coronata Tausch ex Maiden Eucalyptus insignis Naudin Eucalyptus populifolia Desf. Eucalyptus subulata A.Cunn. ex Schauer Eucalyptus umbellata (Gaertn.) Domin Leptospermum umbellatum Gaertn.

Forest Red Gum Eucalyptus tereticornis