''Eucalyptus forrestiana'', commonly known as fuchsia gum or fuchsia mallee, is a species of small tree or

mallet A mallet is a tool used for imparting force on another object, often made of rubber or sometimes wood, that is smaller than a maul or beetle, and usually has a relatively large head. The term is descriptive of the overall size and proport ...

and 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 elsew ...

to an area near Esperance, Western Australia. It has smooth grey bark, narrow oblong to lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds that are square in cross-section, red at maturity and arranged singly in leaf

axil A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

s, yellow flowers and four-angled, winged fruit.

Description

''Eucalyptus forrestiana'' is a small tree or mallet that typically grows to a height of and does not form 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 grey over pale brown bark and a dense dark green canopy. Young plants and

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 repeated ...

regrowth have dull greyish green, petiolate leaves that are arranged alternately, egg-shaped to lance-shaped, long and wide. Adult leaves are also arranged alternately, lance-shaped, the same glossy green on both sides when mature, long and wide. The flowers buds are arranged singly in leaf axils on a flattened peduncle long, the

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 ...

long. Mature buds are red, oblong in side view, square in cross-section, long and wide with a narrow wing on each corner and a flat, disc-like operculum. Flowering occurs from January to March or from April to June and the flowers are yellow. The fruit is a similar shape to the flower buds, long and wide with the valves enclosed below the level of the rim.

Taxonomy

''Eucalyptus forrestiana'' was first formally described in 1904 by the

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

Ludwig Diels Dr. Friedrich Ludwig Emil Diels (24 September 1874 – 30 November 1945) was a German botanist. Diels was born in Hamburg, the son of the classical scholar Hermann Alexander Diels. From 1900 to 1902 he traveled together with Ernst Georg Prit ...

in the journal ''Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie'', in an article jointly authored with

Georg August Pritzel Georg August Pritzel (2 September 1815, Carolath – 14 June 1874) was a German librarian and botanical writer. He studied in Breslau, graduating with a dissertation titled ''Anemonarum revisio''. In 1851 he began work as a ''Hülfsarbeiter'' at ...

. 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 ...

(''forrestiana'') honours "Sir John Forrest", explorer, botanical collector and later the first

Premier of Western Australia The premier of Western Australia is the head of government of the state of Western Australia. The role of premier at a state level is similar to the role of the prime minister of Australia at a federal level. The premier leads the executive bra ...

and member of the first

Federal Parliament The Parliament of Australia (officially the Federal Parliament, also called the Commonwealth Parliament) is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch (represented by the governor-gen ...

Distribution

Fuchsia gum is found around salt lakes and on sand plains in a small area in near-coastal between

Ravensthorpe Ravensthorpe may refer to any of the following places. England *Ravensthorpe, Dewsbury in West Yorkshire **Ravensthorpe railway station, Dewsbury *Ravensthorpe, Northamptonshire *Ravensthorpe, Peterborough in Cambridgeshire *Ravensthorpe, an histor ...

and Cape Arid National Park, extending inland as far as Mt. Nye and Mt. Beaumont in Western Australia, where it grows in clay-sandy soils.

Conservation status

This eucalypt is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and e ...

Use in horticulture

''Eucalyptus forrestiana'' is commonly used as a small street tree in semi-arid areas due to its highly decorative appearance.

References