Eucalyptus smithii

A large tree usually (but also found as a mallee), forming a lignotuber, growing to a height of 40–45 m.

It is typically found in higher rainfall areas, on sloping sites, on the coast and tablelands of NSW, south from Yerranderie, to eastern Victoria. It is a common tree in areas such as the southern highlands of NSW.

It typically has a straight upright trunk with a narrow-leaved canopy. It can be found on sandstone soils as well as enriched sandy soils and basalt.

The basal bark is rough, fibrous, compact and dark grey-brown to black bark on the trunk, resembling ironbark in many cases. The upper bark on the branches (and on the trunk and branches of mallees) is smooth and white to cream-coloured. Upper branch bark is shed in long ribbons. These combined features are a useful identification feature.

Eucalyptus spp. have simple and usually alternate adult leaves with juvenile leaves starting off opposite to alternate (disjunct). In this species, the leaves of young plants to early sapling stage are arranged in opposite pairs, green to greyish, narrow lanceolate to cordate, to 110 mm long and to 25 mm wide, with their bases clasping the stem. Adult leaves are arranged alternately, the same shade of slightly glossy green on both sides, narrow lanceolate to falcate, to 210 mm long and to 16 mm wide, with the base tapering to a petiole to 28 mm long.

The primary inflorescence of “eucalypts” (Angophora / Corymbia / Eucalyptus) is an umbellaster (an umbel-like cluster of flowers). In the flowers of Corymbia and Eucalyptus, the petals and sepals are fused into the distinctive calyptra / operculum (bud cap) which is shed when the flower opens (in some species, 2 bud caps (opercula) are shed). The flowers are conspicuously staminate – where many stamens are basically taking over the role of the petals, all surrounding one central carpel. In this species, the flower buds are arranged in leaf axils in umbellasters of seven. Mature buds are oval to diamond-shaped to 6 mm long and to 4 mm wide with a conical to beaked operculum / calyptra. Flowering occurs from December to January and the flowers are white.

The fruit of eucalypts are a woody capsule (commonly called ‘gum nuts’) which come in a wide variety of shapes with the top part having a sunken, flat or raised disc and with the valves inserted, disc-level, exserted to strongly exserted. In this species, the capsules are cup-shaped, bell-shaped or hemispherical to 6 mm long and to 8 mm wide with valves strongly protruding above the rim. The top of the capsule has a distinctive somewhat-trapezoidal shape with 3 valves – a useful feature in identification. Seeds are black, brown or grey, about 3 mm long, ovoid or flattened-ovoid, often pointed at one end.