''Eucalyptus paniculata'', commonly known as grey ironbark, is a species of tree 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 else ...

to New South Wales. It has dark-coloured, deeply furrowed

ironbark Ironbark is a common name of a number of species in three taxonomic groups within the genus ''Eucalyptus'' that have dark, deeply furrowed bark. Instead of being shed annually as in many of the other species of ''Eucalyptus'', the dead bark accum ...

on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven on a branched peduncle, white flowers and conical, hemispherical or cup-shaped fruit.

Description

''Eucalyptus paniculata'' is a tree that typically grows to a height of and forms 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 grey to black or brownish, deeply furrowed ironbark on the trunk and branches. 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 repeate ...

regrowth have egg-shaped to lance-shaped leaves that are a lighter shade of green on the lower side, long and wide. Adult leaves are glossy green, a lighter shade on the lower side, lance-shaped to curved, long and wide, tapering to a petiole long. The flower buds are mostly arranged in groups of seven on a branched 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 operculum, the floral cup more or less square in cross-section. Flowering occurs in most months and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody, conical, hemispherical or cup-shaped capsule long and wide with the valves close to rim level.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eucalyptus paniculata'' was first formally described in 1797 by

James Edward Smith James Edward Smith may refer to: * James Edward Smith (botanist), English botanist and founder of the Linnean Society * James Edward Smith (murderer), American murderer * James Edward Smith (politician), Canadian businessman and mayor of Toronto * ...

in ''

Transactions of the Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature col ...

'' from material collected by David Burton at

Port Jackson Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea ...

. Smith obtained the specimens from the herbarium of Joseph Banks. The specific epithet (''paniculata'') is from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the 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 the power of the ...

word ''paniculatus'' meaning paniculate, referring to the arrangement of the flowers.

Distribution and habitat

Grey ironbark grows in high rainfall coastal areas from Bermagui to Bulahdelah. Previously a common tree in the inner western suburbs of Sydney. A remnant ironbark still grows in the inner city suburb of

Glebe Glebe (; also known as church furlong, rectory manor or parson's close(s))McGurk 1970, p. 17 is an area of land within an ecclesiastical parish used to support a parish priest. The land may be owned by the church, or its profits may be reserved ...

at St. Johns church.

Uses

A very dense timber, being 1120 kilograms per cubic metre. Heart wood is red-brown or dark brown. The timber has various uses, including railway sleepers, heavy engineering, construction, poles and cross-arms. Timber is difficult to plane and nail. It is slow in drying, requiring careful handling to avoid surface checking. Annual wood production potential is 9 to 18 cubic metres per hectare. The timber is not susceptible to the

lyctus Lyctus or Lyttos ( Greek: or ), was one of the most considerable cities in ancient Crete, which appears in the Homeric catalogue. Lyttos is now a village in the municipality of Minoa Pediada. Lyctus in mythology According to Hesiod, ''Theogon ...

borer.

Gallery

Eucalyptus paniculata Glebe.JPG, Eucalyptus paniculata01.jpg, Eucalyptus paniculata02.jpg, Eucalyptus paniculata Keira.JPG, Eucalyptus paniculata00.jpg,

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3335799 paniculata Myrtales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Plants described in 1797 Taxa named by James Edward Smith