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Myrtaceae FAMILY

Eucalyptus brassiana

Eucalyptus brassiana

Edibility
0/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
Growth—

Eucalyptus brassiana is native to the tropical climate of northeasterm Australia and New Guinea. Summers are hot and moist, whilst winters are mild. There is usually a dry season of 2 - 3 months. The mean annual rainfall is within the range 1,000 - 1,500mm; mean maximum of the hottest month is 30°c; mean minimum of the coldest month is 10°c, and there are generally no frosts[1]. Requires a sunny position, succeeding in a range of soils of low to moderate fertility[2]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 6.5, tolerating 4.5 - 7[2]. Plants are tolerant of seasonal inundation of the soil[2]. The plant develops a lignotuber - this is a woody tuber that starts to develop near the base of seedlings and can become massive in the mature plants of some species. It possesses embedded vegetative buds, allowing the plant to regenerate following crown destruction, for example by fire[3]. This is a newly separated red gum from the low latitudes of northern Queensland and Papua New Guinea. It should be treated like a low-latitude provenance of Eucalyptus tereticornis and tried in low latitude countries wishing to grow eucalypts[1]. In Bangladesh it grows well on the margin of rice fields[2]. It is mentioned as a possible agroforestry species[2] Yearly production of wood potential is about 20 - 25 m3/ha[2].

Propagation

Seed - no pre-treatment is required[4]. Surface sow in a sunny position and make sure the compost is not allowed to dry out[5, 6, 7]. Species that come from high altitudes appreciate 6 - 8 weeks cold stratification at 2°c[8]. Pot up the seedlings into individual pots as soon as the second set of seed leaves has developed, if left longer than this they might not move well. The seedlings are ready for planting in the field when they are 25 - 30 cm tall, usually after 3 - 4 months. The seed has a long viability[8]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Eucalyptus+brassiana>

Pollinators

Bees, Insects

References

  1. [1]Eucalypts for Planting — Jacobs M.R. · FAO; Rome · 1981 · http://www.fao.org · ISBN 92-5-100570-2 ↩︎An excellent publication, rather dated now but with a wealth of information about the Eucalypts. It can be downloaded from the Internet as a PDF file.
  2. [2]Ecocrop — http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home ↩︎Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
  3. [3]EUCLID - Eucalypts of Australia — Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research, Canber · http://keyserver.lucidcentral.org:8080/euclid/data/02050e02-0108-490e-8900-0e0601070d00/media/Html/index.htm ↩︎A website dedicated to the genus Eucalyptus (sensu latu), with descriptions and nomencultural information on all the species.
  4. [4]World Agroforesty Centre — http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ ↩︎An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc.
  5. [5]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  6. [6]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  7. [7]Growing from Seed. Volume 2. — Rice. G. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1988 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. An interesting article on Ensete ventricosum.
  8. [8]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  9. [9]Eucalyptus Leaf Oils: Use, Chemistry, Distillation and Marketing — Southwell I.A. · 1992 · https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(92)80403-2 ↩︎An extensive list of Eucalyptus species and their essential oil content.