''Eucalyptus globulus'', commonly known as southern blue gum
or blue gum, is a species of tall,
evergreen
In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, whic ...
tree
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 southeastern Australia. This ''
Eucalyptus
''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as ...
'' species has mostly smooth bark, juvenile leaves that are whitish and waxy on the lower surface, glossy green, lance-shaped adult leaves,
glaucous
''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), ...
, ribbed flower buds arranged singly or in groups of three or seven 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, ste ...
s, white flowers and woody fruit.
There are four subspecies, each with a different distribution across Australia, occurring in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. The subspecies are the
Victorian blue gum,
Tasmanian blue gum,
Maiden's gum, and
Victorian eurabbie.
Description
''Eucalyptus globulus'' is a tree that typically grows to a height of but may sometimes only be a stunted shrub, or alternatively under ideal conditions can grow as tall as , and forms a
lignotuber. The bark is usually smooth, white to cream-coloured but there are sometimes slabs of persistent, unshed bark at the base. Young plants, often several metres tall, 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 repeate ...
regrowth have stems that are more or less square in cross-section with a prominent wing on each corner. Juvenile leaves are mostly arranged in opposite pairs,
sessile,
glaucous
''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), ...
elliptic to egg-shaped, up to long and wide. Adult leaves are arranged alternately, the same glossy to dark green on both sides, lance-shaped or curved, long and wide on a
petiole long. The flower buds are arranged singly or in groups of three or seven in leaf axils, sometimes sessile or on a short thick
peduncle. The individual buds are also usually sessile, sometimes on a
pedicel up to long. Mature buds are top-shaped to conical, glaucous or green, with a flattened hemispherical, warty
operculum with a central knob. Flowering time varies with subspecies and distribution but the flowers are always white. The fruit is a woody conical or hemispherical
capsule with the valves close to rim level.
Taxonomy and naming
''Eucalyptus globulus'' was first formally described in 1800 by the French botanist
Jacques Labillardière
Jacques-Julien Houtou de Labillardière (28 October 1755 – 8 January 1834) was a French biologist noted for his descriptions of the flora of Australia. Labillardière was a member of a voyage in search of the La Pérouse expedition. He pub ...
in his book, ''
Relation du Voyage à la Recherche de la Pérouse''.
Labillardière collected specimens at
Recherche Bay during the
d'Entrecasteaux expedition in 1792.
The
d'Entrecasteaux expedition made immediate use of the species when they discovered it, the timber being used to improve their oared boats.
The Tasmanian blue gum was proclaimed as the
floral emblem of
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
on 27 November 1962. The species name is from the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, 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 ...
''globulus'', a little ball or small sphere,
referring to the shape of the fruit.
In 1974,
James Barrie Kirkpatrick described four subspecies and the names have been accepted by the
Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Syst ...
.
Each subspecies has a characteristic arrangement of its flower buds:
*
''Eucalyptus globulus'' subsp. ''bicostata'' (Maiden
Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
, Blakely & Simmonds Simmonds as a surname may refer to:
* Ann Simmonds, English pentathlete
* Ellie Simmonds (born 1994), British Paralympic swimmer
* Henry Simmonds, Canada sailor at the 1932 Olympics
* Kaleb Simmonds, Canadian singer, ''Canadian Idol'' contestant
* K ...
) J.B.Kirkp. (formerly ''Eucalyptus bicostata''), commonly known as Victorian blue gum or eurabbie, has
sessile flower buds arranged in groups of three;
*
''Eucalyptus globulus'' Labill. subsp. ''globulus'', commonly known as Tasmanian blue gum, has flower buds arranged singly in leaf axils;
*
''Eucalyptus globulus'' subsp. ''maidenii'' (F.Muell.
Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (german: Müller; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Victo ...
) J.B.Kirkp. (formerly ''Eucalyptus maidenii''), commonly known as Maiden's gum has flower buds arranged in groups of seven
*
''Eucalyptus globulus'' subsp. ''pseudoglobulus ( Naudin) J.B.Kirkp. (formerly ''Eucalyptus globulus'' var. ''pseudoglobulus''), commonly known as Victorian eurabbie has
pedicellate
In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''.
Description
Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...
flower buds arranged in groups of three.
Distribution and habitat
Blue gum grows in forests in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, including some of the
Bass Strait Islands
Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct water ...
. Subspecies ''bicostata'' occurs in
montane
Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial ...
and tableland areas between the Carrai Plateau in northern New South Wales and the
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...
in Victoria. Subspecies ''globulus'' is mainly found in lowland parts of Tasmania, but is also found on some Bass Strait islands including
King Island, and in the extreme south-west of Victoria. Subspecies ''maidenii'' occurs on near-coastal ranges of south-eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria. Subspecies ''pseudoglobulus'' is mostly distributed in eastern
Gippsland
Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It cove ...
but there are isolated populations further inland and 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 bou ...
in south-eastern New South Wales.
There are naturalised non-native occurrences in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
and
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of th ...
, and other parts of southern
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
incl.
Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...
, southern
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
, western
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
(
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
),
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
,
Macaronesia
Macaronesia (Portuguese: ''Macaronésia,'' Spanish: ''Macaronesia'') is a collection of four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic, off the coasts of Africa and Europe. Each archipelago is made up of a number of Atlantic oceanic islands ...
,
Unusual specimens
They typically grow from tall. There are historical claims of even taller trees with
Robert Edwards Carter Stearns claiming that when he was alive, they were capable of growing to 400 feet. While this claim is often regarded as being exaggerated, the environmentalist
Jared Diamond
Jared Mason Diamond (born September 10, 1937) is an American geographer, historian, ornithologist, and author best known for his popular science books '' The Third Chimpanzee'' (1991); ''Guns, Germs, and Steel'' (1997, awarded a Pulitzer Priz ...
argues in favor of this claim, stating that such trees were likely cut down during the colonization of Australia by the English. Tasmanian D. W. Lewin claimed that the tallest was .
Plantations
Blue gum is one of the most extensively planted eucalypts. Its rapid growth and adaptability to a range of conditions is responsible for its popularity. It is especially well-suited to countries with a Mediterranean-type climate, but also grows well in high altitudes in the tropics.
It comprises 65% of all
plantation
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Th ...
hardwood
Hardwood is wood from dicot trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes from ...
in Australia with approximately planted.
In about 1860
Francis Cook planted the tree on
Monserrate Palace, his property at
Sintra
Sintra (, ) is a town and municipality in the Greater Lisbon region of Portugal, located on the Portuguese Riviera. The population of the municipality in 2011 was 377,835, in an area of . Sintra is one of the most urbanized and densely populate ...
in Portugal and within twenty years it had attained the height of 100 m and a circumference of 5 m. By 1878 the tree ″had spread from one end of Portugal to the other″. In 1878 the tree was also planted, partly on Cook's recommendation, in
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...
, Ireland to reclaim ″useless bog land″.
''E. globulus'' begun to be planted as plantations in
Los Lagos and
Los Ríos regions of Chile in the 1990s.
However at these latitudes around the
40th parallel south
The 40th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 40 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, Australasia, the Pacific Ocean and South America. Its long oceanic stretches are the no ...
the tree is at the southern border of the climatic conditions where it can grow, hence good growth in this part of
southern Chile requires good site selection such as sunny north-facing slopes.
[ Some of these plantations grow on ]red clay soil
Ultisols, commonly known as red clay soils, are one of twelve soil orders in the United States Department of Agriculture soil taxonomy. The word "Ultisol" is derived from "ultimate", because Ultisols were seen as the ultimate product of continu ...
.[
]
Uses
Timber
Blue gum timber is yellow-brown, fairly heavy, with an interlocked grain, and is difficult to season. It has poor lumber
Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, w ...
qualities due to growth stress problems, but can be used in construction
Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and ...
, fence posts and poles.
Pulpwood
Essential oil
The leaves are steam distilled to extract eucalyptus oil
Eucalyptus oil is the generic name for distilled oil from the leaf of ''Eucalyptus'', a genus of the plant family Myrtaceae native to Australia and cultivated worldwide. Eucalyptus oil has a history of wide application, as a pharmaceutical, anti ...
. ''E. globulus'' is the primary source of global eucalyptus oil production, with China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
being the largest commercial producer. The oil has therapeutic, perfumery, flavoring
A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of the g ...
, antimicrobial
An antimicrobial is an agent that kills microorganisms or stops their growth. Antimicrobial medicines can be grouped according to the microorganisms they act primarily against. For example, antibiotics are used against bacteria, and antifungals ar ...
and biopesticide
A Biopesticide is a biological substance or organism that damages, kills, or repels organisms seens as pests. Biological pest management intervention involves predatory, parasitic, or chemical relationships.
They are obtained from organisms inclu ...
properties. Oil yield ranges from 1.0-2.4% (fresh weight), with cineole
Eucalyptol is a monoterpenoid. A colorless liquid, it is a bicyclic ether. Eucalyptol has a fresh mint-like smell and a spicy, cooling taste. It is insoluble in water, but miscible with organic solvents. Eucalyptol makes up ~70% - 90% of eucal ...
being the major isolate. ''E. globulus'' oil has established itself internationally because it is virtually phellandrene
Phellandrenes are a pair of organic compounds that have a similar molecular structure and similar chemical properties. α-Phellandrene and β-phellandrene are cyclic monoterpenes and are double-bond isomers. In α-phellandrene, both double bon ...
free, a necessary characteristic for internal pharmaceutical
A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and ...
use. In 1870, Cloez identified and ascribed the name "eucalyptol
Eucalyptol is a monoterpenoid. A colorless liquid, it is a bicyclic ether. Eucalyptol has a fresh mint-like smell and a spicy, cooling taste. It is insoluble in water, but miscible with organic solvents. Eucalyptol makes up ~70% - 90% of eucal ...
" — now more often called cineole — to the dominant portion of ''E. globulus'' oil.
Herb tea
Tasmanian blue gum leaves are used as a herbal tea
Herbal teas, also known as herbal infusions and less commonly called tisanes (UK and US , US also ), are beverages made from the infusion or decoction of herbs, spices, or other plant material in hot water. Oftentimes herb tea, or the plain term ...
.
Phenolics
''E. globulus'' bark contains quinic, dihydroxyphenylacetic and caffeic acid
Caffeic acid is an organic compound that is classified as a hydroxycinnamic acid. This yellow solid consists of both phenolic and acrylic functional groups. It is found in all plants because it is an intermediate in the biosynthesis of lignin, one ...
s, bis(hexahydroxydiphenoyl (HHDP))-glucose, galloyl-bis(HHDP)-glucose, galloyl-HHDP-glucose, isorhamentin-hexoside, quercetin-hexoside, methylellagic acid (EA)-pentose conjugate, myricetin-rhamnoside, isorhamnetin-rhamnoside, mearnsetin, phloridzin, mearnsetin-hexoside, luteolin
Luteolin is a flavone, a type of flavonoid, with a yellow crystalline appearance.
Luteolin is the principal yellow dye compound that is obtained from the plant '' Reseda luteola'', which has been used as a source of the dye since at least the f ...
and a proanthocyanidin B-type dimer, digalloylglucose and catechin
Catechin is a flavan-3-ol, a type of secondary metabolite providing antioxidant roles in plants. It belongs to the subgroup of polyphenols called flavonoids.
The name of the catechin chemical family derives from ''catechu'', which is the tannic ...
. The hydrolyzable tannins tellimagrandin I
Tellimagrandin I is an ellagitannin found in plants, such as ''Cornus canadensis'', ''Eucalyptus globulus'', ''Melaleuca styphelioides'', ''Rosa rugosa'', and walnut. It is composed of two galloyl and one hexahydroxydiphenyl groups bound to a gl ...
, eucalbanin C, 2-O-digalloyl-1,3,4-tri-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose, 6-O-digalloyl-1,2,3-tri-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose, as well as gallic acid
Gallic acid (also known as 3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoic acid) is a trihydroxybenzoic acid with the formula C6 H2( OH)3CO2H. It is classified as a phenolic acid. It is found in gallnuts, sumac, witch hazel, tea leaves, oak bark, and other plants. It i ...
and (+)-catechin
Catechin is a flavan-3-ol, a type of secondary metabolite providing antioxidant roles in plants. It belongs to the subgroup of polyphenols called flavonoids.
The name of the catechin chemical family derives from ''catechu'', which is the tannic ...
can also be isolated.
Tricetin
Tricetin is a flavone, a type of flavonoid. It is a rare aglycone found in the pollen of members of the Myrtaceae, subfamily Leptospermoideae, such as ''Eucalyptus globulus''. This compound shows anticancer effects on human breast adenocarcinoma ...
is a rare flavone aglycone found in the pollen of members of the Myrtaceae, subfamily Leptospermoideae, such as ''E. globulus''.[The Unique Occurrence of the Flavone Aglycone Tricetin in Myrtaceae Pollen. Maria G. Campos, Rosemary F. Webby and Kenneth R. Markham, Z. Naturforsch, 2002, 57c, pages 944-946]
article
See also
* List of superlative trees
The world's superlative trees can be ranked by any factor. Records have been kept for trees with superlative height, trunk diameter or girth, canopy coverage, airspace volume, wood volume, estimated mass, and age.
Tallest
The heights of th ...
References
External links
Botanical characteristics of ''Eucalyptus globulus''
Iglesias Trabado, Gustavo (2007). In
EUCALYPTOLOGICS
File:Starr_050818-4121_Eucalyptus_globulus.jpg, Shedding bark.
File:Starr_050125-3236_Eucalyptus_globulus.jpg, Flower bud.
File:Starr 051123-5467 Eucalyptus globulus.jpg, Flowers and leaves
File:Starr_050818-4120_Eucalyptus_globulus.jpg, Fruit.
File:Eucalyptus Globulus fruit 3-6 valves.jpg, 3, 4, 5 & 6 valved fruits.
File:Eucalyptus_globulus_-_Köhler–s_Medizinal-Pflanzen-147.jpg, An illustration from ''Köhler's Medicinal Plants
''Köhler's Medicinal Plants'' (or, ''Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen'') is a German herbal written principally by Hermann Adolph Köhler (1834 - 1879, physician and chemist), and edited after his death by Gustav Pabst. The work was first published ...
'' (1887).
{{Taxonbar, from=Q159528
globulus
Myrtales of Australia
Trees of Australia
Flora of Tasmania
Flora of Victoria (Australia)
Taxa named by Jacques Labillardière
Crops originating from Australia
Medicinal plants of Oceania
Trees of mild maritime climate
Garden plants of Australia
Ornamental trees