52 
The Queensland Naturalist November, 1932 
yZ THE EUCALYPTS OR GUM TREES OF THE 
JZ BRISBANE DISTRICT. 
By C. T. White, Government Botanist.) 
(Continued from the “Queensland Naturalist,” 
Vol. VII., p. 39.) 
17. Eucalyptus melancphloia (Silver-leaved Ironbark). 
Description . — Medium sized tree with a hard furrowed 
black bark, somewhat friable, the cracks often carrying a 
dark red kino or “gum.” Branchlets and leaves, flower 
buds and young fruits usually covered with a grey or 
bluish bloom. Coppice leaves or leaves on young trees 
opposite, coriaceous, ovate or somewhat orbicular, base 
cordate or auriculate, sessile or on a very short stalk, up to 
5 inches long and nearly as broad but often very much 
smaller and similar to leaves on the adult trees ; veins and 
veinlets clearly discernible on both faces, veining some- 
what irregular, main nerves \ to nearly \ inch apart, 
intramarginal vein indistinct and. broken. Ordinary (sec- 
ondary or adult) leaves coriaceous, ovate, oblong or nearly 
orbicular (or in some trees outside the Brisbane District 
lanceolate), base auriculate, cordate or in the lanceolate 
leaves somewhat cuneate, the rounded or oblong 
leaves sessile or very shortly stalked, the longer lanceolate 
leaves on stalks (petioles) up to 4 inch, apex rounded or 
less frequently acute or pointed, blade in the rounded or 
oblong leaves lV-2in. long and H to 3 times as long as 
broad, in the longer lanceolate leaves up to 6in. long and 
4 to 5 times as long as broad, midrib distinct on both sur- 
faces, lateral nerves rather indistinct, particularly in the 
thicker more coriaceous leaves, mostly arising from the 
midrib at an angle of about 45 degrees, intramarginal 
vein mostly about 1 line or slightly more removed from 
the margin. Flowers in umbels in the upper ieaf axils, 
the terminal ones often forming short leafless panicles. 
Umbels 3-8 flowered ; peduncle rather slender, one-third 
to one half inch long: calyx tube turbinate, merging at 
the base into the slender pedicel, calyx and pedicel to- 
gether one-quarter to one-third inch long, operculum 
conical, pointed, 14-2 lines high. Stamens in several 
series, all perfect, the longest filaments about 4 inch long, 
anthers small opening by wide lateral slits. Seed capsule 
somewhat globular or broadly pear-shaped, truncate and 
slightly restricted at the top, 4-5 lines diam., 4-5-celled, 
the valves short included or very slightly protruding. 
Distribution .— Eastern and Northern Australia from 
the neighbourhood of Scone (N.S.W.) through Queensland 
to tl le Northern Territory and North-West of Western 
Australia. In New South Wales it seems to be restricted 
to western localities, but in parts of Queensland comes 
right down to the coast. 
