Eucalyptus nitens

Cultivation Details

Eucalyptus nitens is native to the temperate climate of southeastern Australia, where it is found at elevations from 1,000 - 1,300 metres. Rainfall can occur all year round, or be winter only, with a mean annual rainfall within the range 750 - 1,250mm or more and a non-severe dry season of up to 3 months. The mean maximum temperature of the hottest month is 21 - 24°c; mean minimum temperature of the coldest month ranges from -2 to +2 °c, and there are generally around 50 - 150 frosts a year with occasional snow^[1]. When dormant, the plant can survive temperatures down to about -12°c, but young growth is more tender and can be severely damaged at -1°c^[2]. Requires a sunny position, succeeding in a range of heavy to medium-textured, well-drained soils of high to moderate fertility^[2]. Requires a well-drained soil rich in organic matter for best growth^[1]. Prefers a pH in the range 6 - 6.5, tolerating 5.5 - 7.5^[2]. A very fast-growing species when young, trees 5 years old from seed have exceeded 16 metres in height^[3]. Annual wood production potential is 20 - 40 cubic metres per hectare^[2]. Trees will only coppice reliably up to the age of around 4 years^[3]. Eucalyptus nitens is a notoriously shy seeder, and seed collection tends to be concentrated on the occasional trees which carry seed. A high degree of selfing is suspected^[1].. When crushed the juvenile leaves exude an odour somewhat like varnish^[1]. A very good species for vigour and volume growth. One of the more frost-resistant eucalypts. It handles well in nurseries; it tolerates root-pruning and can be prepared for bare-root planting in a suitable climate^[1]. The lower branches of young plantation trees tend to stand out at right angles to the trunk and do not shed as well as those of most eucalypts^[1]. The juvenile leaves of this species are unpalatable to many pests, in some cases even to the leaf-cutting Atta ants of Brazil, and the Australian possums which attack eucalypt foliage in New Zealand. The pests soon attack the adult leaves^[1]. It is one of the more promising eucalypts under trial outside Australia. It has proved very vigorous in Argentina, Brazil, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, South Africa and the United States (California, Hawaii). There appear to be differences in behaviour, including incidence of defects, between provenances of Eucalyptus nitens. Poles in Natal, South Africa, show severe spiral grain, which has not been commented upon in native forests in Australia. The Wattle Research Institute of South Africa has recently established a provenance trial of 27 Australian and one South African seed lots (PWRI Annual Report 1975-76). The Australian seed lots covered a wide range of the species. Interesting variations in the size and shape of juvenile leaves and early height growth were noted. The more westerly Victorian provenances were proving superior in height growth at the time of the report^[1]. Eucalyptus species have not adopted a deciduous habit and continue to grow until it is too cold for them to do so. This makes them more susceptible to damage from sudden cold snaps. If temperature fluctuations are more gradual, as in a woodland for example, the plants have the opportunity to stop growing and become dormant, thus making them more cold resistant. A deep mulch around the roots to prevent the soil from freezing also helps the trees to survive cold conditions^[4]. Many members of this genus are remarkably adaptable however, and there can be a dramatic increase in the hardiness of subsequent generations from the seed of survivors growing in temperate zones^[4].