Sugar gum

Description

Eucalyptus cladocalyx, commonly known as sugar gum, is a species of eucalypt tree found in the Australian state of South Australia. It is found naturally in three distinct populations - in the Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula and on Kangaroo Island. Sugar Gums from the Flinders Ranges reach up to 35 metres (115 ft) in height and have the classic "gum" habit - with a straight trunk having a dbh of 1 to 1.5 m (3 ft 3 in to 4 ft 11 in) and steep branches occurring about halfway up. Each main branch ends with its own little canopy. These are commonly cultivated as farm windbreaks and for timber. However, Eyre Peninsula and Kangaroo Island trees are much shorter typically between 8 to 15 m (26 to 49 ft) in height and often have crooked trunks and a dbh of 0.4 m (1 ft 4 in). The crown has an open spreading habit with a typical spread of 12 to 15 m (39 to 49 ft). The strongly discolorous, glossy adult leaves are arranged alternately supported on a petiole that is 0.9 to 2.7 cm (0.35 to 1.06 in) in length. The leaf blade is darker green on upper side and paler below with slightly falcate to lanceolate shape and a length of 8 to 17 cm (3.1 to 6.7 in) and a width of 1.2 to 3.2 cm (0.47 to 1.26 in) with a base usually tapering to the petiole. The side-veins in the leaf are at an acute or wider angle and densely reticulate. The intramarginal vein is parallel to but removed from margin with small and obscure oil glands. It flowers in summer producing white-cream-yellow flowers. The axillary unbranched inflorescence occur in groups of buds 7, 9 or 11 buds per umbel. The oblong pale green, yellow to creamy mature buds have a length of 0.8 to 1.1 cm (0.31 to 0.43 in) and a width of 0.4 to 0.5 cm (0.16 to 0.20 in). The buds are often longitudinally striated and scarred with a rounded operculum, inflexed stamens and cuboid to oblong anthers. The urceolate or barrel-shaped longitudinally ribbed fruits that form after flowering are 0.7 to 1.5 cm (0.28 to 0.59 in) in length and 0.5 to 1 cm (0.20 to 0.39 in) wide with a descending disc and three or four enclosed valves. The light grey to brown seeds within the fruit have a flattened-ovoid shape that can be pointed at one end and are 1.5 to 3 mm (0.059 to 0.118 in) long.