Eucalyptus stenostoma


Eucalyptus stenostoma, commonly known as the Jillaga ash, is a small to medium-sized tree in that is endemic to a restricted part of New South Wales. It has rough, fissured bark on the lower trunk, smooth creamy white bark above, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of thirteen to nineteen or more, white flowers and spherical fruit with a small opening.

Description

Eucalyptus stenostoma is a tree that typically grows to a height of, often with a leaning trunk, and forms a lignotuber. The bark on the lower trunk is rough, fissured, shortly fibrous and greyish black, the bark above smooth, white or yellow with insect scribbles and is shed in ribbons. Young plants and coppice regrowth have leaves that are green to greyish, slightly paler on the lower surface, egg-shaped to lance-shaped, up to long and wide. Adult leaves are arranged alternately, glossy green, lance-shaped to curved, long and wide on a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged in leaf s in groups of thirteen to nineteen or more on an unbranched peduncle long, the individual buds on pedicels long. Mature buds are oval, long and wide with a conical to rounded operculum. Flowering occurs in summer and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody, spherical capsule long and wide with the valves enclosed below the rim.

Taxonomy and naming

Eucalyptus stenostoma was first formally described in 1972 by Lawrie Johnson and Donald Blaxell in Contributions from the New South Wales Herbarium. The type specimens were collected in 1965 by David John Hynd, near the head of the Tuross River north-west of Nerrigundah. The specific epithet is from ancient Greek words meaning "narrow" and "opening", referring to the opening of the fruit.

Distribution and habitat

Jillaga Ash grows only in the catchment areas of the Tuross and Deua Rivers, in steeply sloping dry woodland on relatively infertile soils. Difficult to locate, however, it is locally abundant in some sites.