175 
No. 75. 
Eucalyptus dives, Sehauer. 
The Broad-leaved Peppermint. 
(Natural Order MYRTACE^l.) 
Botanical description. —Genus, Eucalyptus (see p. 33, Part II). 
Botanical description. —Species, E. dives. Sehauer, in Walpers’ Eepert. ii, 92G. 
A tree of medium size, but often flowering as a tall shrub. 
Bark. —Rough, like a typical Peppermint, with smooth limbs, somewhat ribbony. (Mr. A. 
Murphy, an experienced collector, says that, practically, in the Bathurst district, he 
distinguishes this species from E. piperita by the yellowish upper limbs, those of piperita 
being white.) 
Juvenile leaves. —Comparatively broad (sometimes so broad as to be nearly orbicular) ; 
stem-clasping, more or less cordate at the base, and in some cases quite acuminate. 
The shape is brought out in the figure. Both juvenile and mature leaves reek with oil. 
Mature leaves. —Broadly lanceolate, nearly symmetrical, usually rather thick. Venation, 
spreading from the base. An important characteristic is the strongly-marked venation. 
On drying, the principal veins stand out in relief against the vascular tissue. Often shining, 
a characteristic best brought out in fully mature leaves, but the foliage may be both dull and 
glaucous. Up to 5 or 6 inches is a common length for the leaves, but they are barely 
3 inches in some of the Bombala and Queanbeyan specimens; inches would appear to 
be an average length. Specimens up to nearly 2 inches in width are found in Mount Vincent 
specimens; 1| inch is a common width; 1-1 jr inch may be given as the average width. 
Buds. —Operculum usually blunt, though not quite hemispherical. In dried specimens, the 
operculum more pointed. Buds often glaucous. 
Flowers. —A profuse flowering species, with dense umbels of eight to twelve, and even more, 
flowery. Anthers reniform, the cells divergent and confluent at the apex. 
Fruits. —Sometimes nearly hemispherical, wii h a greater or less tendency to pear-shape. The 
rim often domed or arched. The tips of the valves occasionally a little exserted. The rims 
(mouths) usually red, a characteristic often attributed to E. hamastoma, and the fruit itself 
often pale-coloured; may be very shiny or glaucous. 
If unaccompanied by sucker leaves, I doubt if E. dives can sometimes be 
distinguished from E. amygdalina. Mueller failed to distinguish the species, while 
admitting a certain amount of difference, amounting to a variety. 
Speaking generally, E. dives is more aromatic than even E. amygdalina. 
The odour is different, though difficult to dcscrihe. The foliage of the former species 
is usually broader and more glaucous than that of the latter. The fruit of E. dives 
is usually larger; nevertheless, all these characters have sometimes to be cautiously 
examined when herbarium specimens of mature foliage, buds, and fruits are alone 
available. 
