''Eucalyptus patellaris'', commonly known as weeping box,
is a species of tree that is
endemic to the
Northern Territory in Australia. It has rough, fibrous to flaky bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and bell-shaped or cup-shaped fruit.
Description
''Eucalyptus patellaris'' is a tree that typically grows to a height of and forms a
lignotuber. It has rough, greyish, flaky or fibrous bark on the trunk and branches. Young plants and
coppice regrowth have dull green, egg-shaped leaves that are long and wide. Adult leaves are lance-shaped or curved, the same shade of green on both sides, long and wide, tapering to a
petiole long. The flower buds are arranged on the ends of branchlets on a branched
peduncle Peduncle may refer to:
*Peduncle (botany), a stalk supporting an inflorescence, which is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed
*Peduncle (anatomy), a stem, through which a mass of tissue is attached to a body
**Peduncle (art ...
long, the individual buds in groups of seven on
pedicels
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 ...
long. Mature buds are pear-shaped to oval, long and wide with a conical or beaked
operculum. Flowering occurs from November to February and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody, bell-shaped or cup-shaped
capsule long and wide with the valves near rim level.
Taxonomy
''Eucalyptus patellaris'' was first formally described in 1859 by
Ferdinand von Mueller
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 Vict ...
in ''
Journal of the Proceedings of the Linneany Society, Botany'' from material collected from the upper part of the
Roper River.
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 ...
(''patellaris'') is from Latin, meaning "pan" or "knee-cap", referring to the shape of the operculum in the original, possibly diseased buds.
Distribution and habitat
Weeping box grows in open forest and woodland in gentle slopes and on river flats in the
Top End of the Northern Territory in scattered locations. Some sources list this species as occurring in the
Kimberley
Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to:
Places and historical events
Australia
* Kimberley (Western Australia)
** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley
* Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania
* Kimberley, Tasmania a small town
* County of Kimberley, a ...
region of Western Australia, but recent research indicates that these specimens are a new species, ''
E. xerothermica''.
See also
*
List of ''Eucalyptus'' species
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15354138
Trees of Australia
patellaris
Myrtales of Australia
Flora of the Northern Territory
Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller
Plants described in 1859