''Ventilago viminalis'', commonly known as supplejack, vine tree or whip vine, is a tree native to Northern and

Central Australia Central Australia, also sometimes referred to as the Red Centre, is an inexactly defined region associated with the geographic centre of Australia. In its narrowest sense it describes a region that is limited to the town of Alice Springs and i ...

from coastal regions of Queensland to the Northern Territory and Western Australia (with occurrences in New South Wales and South Australia).

Description

The plant begins life as a scrambler, using other trees, shrubs and even grasses for support. As it ages the stem becomes increasingly woody and the plant eventually develops a growth form more typical of a tree. The tree can reach 7 metres in height and often has several trunks with pendulous branch extremities. The bark is dark and fissured. The leaves have petioles and are green and lanceolate. The flowers are small and greenish yellow. Flowering season varies depending on rainfall. The fruits are indehiscent and have a single prominent longitudinal wing.

Taxonomy

It was first described by

William Jackson Hooker Sir William Jackson Hooker (6 July 178512 August 1865) was an English botanist and botanical illustrator, who became the first director of Kew when in 1841 it was recommended to be placed under state ownership as a botanic garden. At Kew he ...

in 1848. The species epithet, viminalis, is a Latin adjective describing the plant as having long flexible shoots suitable for basket work. It is a member of the

Rhamnaceae The Rhamnaceae are a large family of flowering plants, mostly trees, shrubs, and some vines, commonly called the buckthorn family. Rhamnaceae is included in the order Rosales. The family contains about 55 genera and 950 species. The Rhamnaceae h ...

family.

Australian aboriginal uses and names

Australian Aborigines eat the gum from this tree. They scrape it off as it comes through, twisting it onto a stick. It can be chewed like chewing gum. The supplejack in Arrernte is called ''Atnyerampwe'', and the gum is ''Ngwarle atnyerampwe''. In the Kimberley ''Ventilago viminalis'' is commonly called the 'medicine tree'. Local people cut chunks out of the bark or roots to boil up and make an infusion to treat a variety of skin ailments as well as bruises and rheumatism. Trees with large telltale oval or oblong scars in the bark are often found in the local bush. The Walmajarri people of Paruku Indigenous Protected Area call this tree ''Walakarri'',

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7920245 Rhamnaceae Rosales of Australia Flora of Queensland Australian Aboriginal bushcraft Bushfood Bush medicine Medicinal plants of Australia Trees of Australia Drought-tolerant trees Taxa named by William Jackson Hooker