''Corymbia candida'', commonly known as the desert ghost gum or ghost gum, is a

bloodwood Bloodwood is a common name for several unrelated trees, including: * '' Baloghia inophylla'' (Brush or Scrub bloodwood), '' Baloghia marmorata'' (Marbled bloodwood), '' Baloghia parviflora'' (Small-flowered bloodwood), all found in Australia * ' ...

native to arid parts of the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

and

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

Description

The weeping tree typically grows to a height of and forms a

lignotuber A lignotuber is a woody swelling of the root crown possessed by some plants as a protection against destruction of the plant stem, such as by fire. Other woody plants may develop basal burls as a similar survival strategy, often as a response t ...

. It has smooth, white and powdery bark that it sheds in thin strips. It forms a crown of oppositely arranged leaves. The leaves have

cordate Cordate is an adjective meaning ' heart-shaped' and is most typically used for: * Cordate (leaf shape) The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a ...

shaped blades that can rarely be

lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

. The concolorous, dull, grey-green to pale green blade has a length of and a width of . It blooms around July and produces axillary compound

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

s in groups of three buds per umbel. The obovoid to pyriform shaped mature buds have a length of and a width of with a flattened operculum and shallow inflexed

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s and white flowers. The pedicellate fruits that form after flowering have a cupular to cylindrical or barrel shape with a length of and a width of with a descending disc and three enclosed valves. The brown to red-brown coloured seeds within have a length of and a flattened to saucer-like shape.

Taxonomy

''Corymbia candida'' was first formally described by Kenneth Hill and

Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson FAA, (26 June 1925 – 1 August 1997) known as Lawrie Johnson, was an Australian taxonomic botanist. He worked at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, for the whole of his professional career, as a botanist (1948 ...

in 1995 in the journal '' Telopea'', from specimens collected near Giralia in 1983. ''Corymbia candida'' has a strong resemblance to '' C. aspera''. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

is taken from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word ''candidus'' meaning ''glossy white'' in reference to the starkly white trunk.

Distribution

It is distributed widely through the

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a glo ...

and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia where it grows in breakaway areas and pebbly plains in clay, sand, loam or gravel red coloured soils. It is found as far west as

Exmouth Exmouth is a harbor, port town, civil parishes in England, civil parish and seaside resort, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe and southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the List of town ...

and has a scattered distribution extending eastwards through the

Gascoyne River The Gascoyne River is a river in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. At , it is the longest river in Western Australia. Description The Gascoyne River comprises three branches in its upper reaches. Draining the Collier Range, the river ...

catchment to the headwaters and continuing into the Little Sandy Desert,

Great Sandy Desert The Great Sandy Desert is an interim Australian bioregion,IBRA Version 6.1
data

Gibson Desert The Gibson Desert is a large desert in Western Australia, largely in an almost "pristine" state. It is about in size, making it the fifth largest desert in Australia, after the Great Victoria, Great Sandy, Tanami and Simpson deserts. The ...

and into the Northern Territory and the

Tanami Desert The Tanami Desert is a desert in northern Australia, situated in the Northern Territory and Western Australia. It has a rocky terrain with small hills, and cacti. The Tanami was the Northern Territory's final frontier and was not fully explored b ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15395662 candida Myrtales of Australia Flora of Western Australia Flora of the Northern Territory Plants described in 1995

Description

Taxonomy

Distribution

See also

References