''Eucalyptus smithii'', commonly known as the gully gum, gully peppermint, blackbutt peppermint, or ironbark peppermint, is a species of medium-sized to tall tree, sometimes a mallee, 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 elsew ...

to southeastern Australia. It has rough, compact bark on the trunk, smooth ribbony bark above, narrow lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and cup-shaped, bell-shaped or hemispherical fruit.

Description

''Eucalyptus smithii'' is a tree that typically grows to a height of , or a mallee to . The tree form has rough, fibrous, compact and dark grey-brown to black bark on the trunk. The bark on the branches and on the trunk and branches of mallees is smooth and white to cream-coloured. Upper branch bark is shed in long ribbons. The leaves of young plants to early sapling stage are arranged in opposite pairs, green to greyish, narrow lance-shaped, long and wide, with their bases clasping the stem. Adult leaves are arranged alternately, the same shade of slightly glossy green on both sides, narrow lance-shaped to curved, long and wide, with the base tapering to a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged 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 in groups of seven on an unbranched peduncle long, the individual buds 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 oval to diamond-shaped, long and wide with a conical to beaked operculum. Flowering occurs from December to January and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody cup-shaped, bell-shaped or hemispherical capsule long and wide with valves strongly protruding above the rim.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eucalyptus smithii'' was first formally described in 1899 by

Richard Thomas Baker Richard Thomas Baker (1 December 1854 – 14 July 1941) was an Australian economic botanist, museum curator and educator. Early life Baker was born in Woolwich, England, son of Richard Thomas Baker, a blacksmith, and his wife Sarah, née Colkett. ...

in ''

Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales The Linnean Society of New South Wales promotes ''the Cultivation and Study of the Science of Natural History in all its Branches'' and was founded in Sydney, New South Wales ( Australia) in 1874 and incorporated in 1884. History The Society suc ...

'', from specimens collected by William Bäuerlen near Braidwood. 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 ...

(''smithii'') honours academic chemist

Henry George Smith Henry George Smith (26 July 1852 – 19 September 1924) was an Australian chemist whose pioneering work on the chemistry of the essential oils of the Australian flora achieved worldwide recognition. Smith was born at Littlebourne, Kent, Englan ...

(1852 - 1954), for his pioneering work on essential oils of eucalypts and other Australian flora.

Distribution and habitat

Gully gum grows in shallow soils on sloping sites on the coast and tablelands south from

Yerranderie Yerranderie is a ghost town located near Kanangra-Boyd National Park of New South Wales, Australia in Wollondilly Shire. History Yerranderie was formerly a silver mining town of 2000 people, but the mining industry collapsed in 1927, and the t ...

in New South Wales to eastern Victoria where it occurs as a rough-barked tree in well-watered valleys or as a smooth-barked mallee on mountains.

Uses

The species is widely grown in

southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...

, and its leaves are used for the production of distilled

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, ant ...

. The oil is high in

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 eucaly ...

(75–84%).Boland, D.J., Brophy, J.J., and A.P.N. House, ''Eucalyptus Leaf Oils'', 1991, ''E. smithii'' also shows some promise in the pulpwood industry.

Gallery

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q280219 smithii Trees of Australia Flora of Victoria (Australia) Flora of New South Wales Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1899 Taxa named by Richard Thomas Baker