''Eucalyptus olida'' is a species of small to medium-sized 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 elsew ...

to a restricted 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 ...

, Australia. It has rough, flaky and fibrous bark on the trunk and larger branches, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven to fifteen or more, white flowers and barrel-shaped or bell-shaped fruit.

Description

''Eucalyptus olida'' 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 thick, rough, fibrous and flaky bark on the trunk and larger branches, smooth white or grey bark that is shed in long ribbons from branches less than in diameter. 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 dull bluish green, egg-shaped leaves that are long and wide. Adult leaves are the same shade of dull to slightly glossy green on both sides, lance-shaped to curved, long and wide tapering to a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged in leaf axils in groups of between seven and fifteen or more 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, about long and wide with a rounded or conical operculum. Flowering has been recorded in February and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody, barrel-shaped or bell-shaped capsule with the valves near rim level.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eucalyptus olida'' was first formally described in 1990 by

Lawrie Johnson Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, FAA, (26 June 1925 – 1 August 1997) known as Lawrie Johnson, was an Australian Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic botany, botanist. He worked at the Royal Botanic Garden ...

and Ken Hill in the journal '' Telopea''. The specific epithet (''olida'') 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 ...

''olidus'', meaning "smelling" or "rank", referring to the odour of the leaves when crushed.

Distribution and habitat

This eucalypt is restricted to the Timbarra Plateau and

Gibraltar Range National Park Gibraltar Range is a national park in north-eastern New South Wales, Australia, north-east of Glen Innes and north of Sydney. The Park is part of the Washpool and Gibraltar Range area of the World Heritage Site Gondwana Rainforests of Au ...

where it grows in forest and woodland in shallow soil derived from granite.

Uses

Essential oils

The leaves of ''E. olida'' are distilled for their crystalline

essential oils An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the o ...

used in

flavouring A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of the gus ...

and

perfumery Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Th ...

. The leaf oil is 98%

methyl cinnamate Methyl cinnamate is the methyl ester of cinnamic acid and is a white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is found naturally in a variety of plants, including in fruits, like strawberry, and some culinary spices, such as Sichuan ...

and yield is 2-6% of fresh leaf weight.

Use in food

The leaf of ''E. olida'' is also used as a dried spice product in

bushfood Bush tucker, also called bush food, is any food native to Australia and used as sustenance by Indigenous Australians, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, but it can also describe any native flora or fauna used for culinary or ...

cooking, especially with fruit and in herbal teas. It has high anti-oxidant activity.Zhao, J., Agboola, S., ''Functional Properties of Australian Bushfoods - A Report for the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation,'' 2007, RIRDC Publication No 07/03

Gallery

File:Eucalyptus olida juvenile foliage1.JPG, Juvenile foliage File:Methyl cinnamate1.JPG,

Methyl cinnamate Methyl cinnamate is the methyl ester of cinnamic acid and is a white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is found naturally in a variety of plants, including in fruits, like strawberry, and some culinary spices, such as Sichuan ...

extracted from leaves File:Eucalyptus olida distillation1.JPG, Leaves in small steam distillation unit

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5405658 Bushfood Flora of New South Wales olida Myrtales of Australia Trees of Australia Taxa named by Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson Taxa named by Ken Hill (botanist)