''Eucalyptus cephalocarpa'', commonly known as mealy stringybark or silver stringybark is a species of small to medium-sized tree, that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to south-eastern Australia. It has rough, fibrous bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped adult leaves, Flower buds arranged in groups of seven, white flowers and conical, bell-shaped or hemispherical fruit. Eucalyptus cephalocarpa buds

Description

''Eucalyptus cephalocarpa'' 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 thick, soft, fibrous grey-brown, fissured bark on the trunk and branches, sometimes smooth on the thinnest branches. The leaves on young plants and on

coppice Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management which exploits the capacity of many species of trees to put out new shoots from their stump or roots if cut down. In a coppiced wood, which is called a copse, young tree stems are repeate ...

regrowth are arranged in opposite pairs, usually bluish green and glaucous, egg-shaped to almost round, long, wide and

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

. Adult leaves are lance-shaped to curved, long and wide on a petiole long. They are the same green to bluish colour on both sides. The flower buds are arranged in leaf axils in groups of seven on an unbranched peduncle long, individual buds on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

up to long. Mature buds are club-shaped, diamond-shaped or oval, long and wide with a conical to rounded operculum and often glaucous. Flowering occurs between February and June and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody conical, bell-shaped or hemispherical capsule long and wide with the valves at rim level or slightly above.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eucalyptus cephalocarpa'' was first formally described in 1934 by

William Blakely William Faris Blakely (November 1875 – 1 September 1941) was an Australian botanist and collector. From 1913 to 1940 he worked in the National Herbarium of New South Wales, working with Joseph Maiden on ''Eucalyptus'', Maiden named a ''red ...

who published the description in his book ''A Key to the Eucalypts''. The specific epithet (''cephalocarpa'') is derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

words ''kephale'' meaning "head" and ''karpos'' meaning "fruit" referring to the crowded fruit of this species.

Distribution and habitat

Mealy stringybark occurs mainly in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

but is also in found in the

Nadgee Nature Reserve The Nadgee Nature Reserve is a protected nature reserve that is located in the far south coast region of New South Wales, in eastern Australia. The reserve is situated to the immediate south of Beowa National Park. Its southern border is boun ...

in the far south-east of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. It is common around

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, from the eastern suburbs to the Dandenongs and south to the

Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to the mainland in the north. Geo ...

. Its range extends to near Castlemaine, Kinglake and

Mallacoota Mallacoota is a small town in the East Gippsland region in the state of Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Mallacoota had a population of 1,063. At holiday times, particularly Easter and Christmas, the population increases by about 8,000 ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4529685 Flora of New South Wales Flora of Victoria (Australia) Trees of Australia cephalocarpa Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1934 Taxa named by William Blakely

Description

Taxonomy and naming

Distribution and habitat

See also

References