604 OBSERVATIONS ON THE EUCALYPTS OF N.S.W., 



It is often seen as a graceful sapling, but may attain the dignity 

 of a large tree; in this Colony we have it up to 3 feet in diameter 

 with a height of over 150 feet. 



It has rather sparse, drooping foliage, which gives it, at times, 

 something of a willow-like aspect. 



Bark. — The appearance of the bark of this tree is worthy of 

 careful record, to save confusion. It is nearly a White Gum 

 when very young, but afterwards the bark of the upper part falls 

 off in thin, long ribbons (hence the name Ribbon Gum), and the 

 lower part of the trunk becomes covered, to a varying height, 

 with fibrous bark of the character known to many as Peppermint 

 bark. 



We have not observed a tree of this variety falling strictly 

 within the definition of White Gum, like E. hcemadtoma, for 

 instance; it is nearly a White Gum. 



Sometimes, as observed near Mittagong, the lower part of the 

 trunk of the River White Gum is of a thin scaly appearance; in 

 trees say 12 inches in diameter, this scaliness would extend to 

 10 or 12 feet from the ground. This scaly appearance, which is 

 not easy to describe, is intermediate in character between the 

 scabrous bark of a Grey Gum ( E. punctata or proioinqua)^ and 

 the thick scaly bark of a Bloodwood (E. corymbosa). As these 

 trees increase in size, the scaliness changes into that of a hard, 

 fibrous " peppermint-like bark " character. The branches are 

 quite smooth. 



We draw attention to this matter, as two observers might 

 possibly obtain two series of herbarium specimens agreeing in the 

 minutest particulars, and one observer might report his tree smooth- 

 barked ( LeiophloiceJ, and the other half-barked (HeniiphloiceJ. 



The name gi^^en by the aborigines of the County of Cumberland, 

 N.S.W, to the "River White Gum" used to be " Kayer-ro," 

 according to the late Sir William Macarthur. This accurate 

 observer writes of it — " Of no value for timber. A small, quick- 

 growing species, very elegant when in blossom; is found only on the 

 immediate sandy banks of rivers; the inner bark used for tying 



