''Endiandra floydii'' is a small-sized

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

tree. Despite its common name, Crystal Creek walnut, this tree is unrelated to northern-hemisphere

walnuts A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus ''Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, ''Juglans regia''. Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a true bot ...

, and is a

laurel Laurel may refer to: Plants * Lauraceae, the laurel family * Laurel (plant), including a list of trees and plants known as laurel People * Laurel (given name), people with the given name * Laurel (surname), people with the surname * Laurel (mus ...

. It is named after the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n botanist,

Alexander Floyd Alexander Geoffrey Floyd (1 April 1926 – 12 December 2022) was an Australian botanist with an expert knowledge of rainforest plants, particularly the rainforest trees of New South Wales. He has worked with the New South Wales Forestry Commiss ...

Habitat

The Crystal Creek walnut is restricted to

paleozoic The Paleozoic (or Palaeozoic) Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. The name ''Paleozoic'' ( ;) was coined by the British geologist Adam Sedgwick in 1838 by combining the Greek words ''palaiós'' (, "old") and ' ...

metamorphics but with overlying

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

soils in the

Mount Warning Mount Warning ( Bundjalung: ''Wollumbin''), a mountain in the Tweed Range in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, was formed from a volcanic plug of the now-gone Tweed Volcano. The mountain is located west-south-west of Mu ...

area 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 ...

, and a couple of adjacent areas in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. The Crystal Creek walnut grows in

and is also found as an understorey plant in

brush box ''Lophostemon confertus'' (syn. ''Tristania conferta''), is an evergreen tree native to Australia, though it is cultivated in the United States and elsewhere. Common names include brush box, Queensland box, Brisbane box, pink box, box scrub, a ...

ecotone An ecotone is a transition area between two biological communities, where two communities meet and integrate. It may be narrow or wide, and it may be local (the zone between a field and forest) or regional (the transition between forest and gras ...

areas, on moderately steep slopes no higher than 430 metres above sea level. The Crystal Creek walnut is considered

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...

, with a

ROTAP Rare or Threatened Australian Plants, usually abbreviated to ROTAP, is a list of rare or threatened Australian plant taxa. Developed and maintained by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the most recent edition ...

rating of 2E.

Description

A small tree, often with coppice shoots at the base. New leaves pinkish brown. The bark is pale to dark grey. Leaves are

elliptic In mathematics, an ellipse is a plane curve surrounding two focal points, such that for all points on the curve, the sum of the two distances to the focal points is a constant. It generalizes a circle, which is the special type of ellipse in ...

to narrow-elliptic, 5–15 cm long, 2–5 cm wide. Small creamy green flowers form in autumn. The large fruit matures in summer, the size of an apple or a pear. Being red to purplish black when ripe. Germination is not particularly slow and quite reliable. Image:habitat of Endiandra globosa and E floydii - NSW Qld border.jpg, habitat of Endiandra floydii, NSW - Qld border Image:Crystal Creek Walnut - juvenile.JPG, juvenile Endiandra floydii Image:Crystal Creek Walnut - leaves.JPG, Endiandra floydii - leaves

References

* Floyd, A.G., ''Rainforest Trees of Mainland South-eastern Australia'', Inkata Press 1989, * Floyd, A.G., Australian Rainforests in New South Wales Volume 2 - 1990 *

External links

Photo of A.G.Floyd next to Endiandra floydii
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5376110 Trees of Australia Endangered biota of Queensland Endangered flora of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland floydii Laurales of Australia Taxa named by Bernard Hyland