Yellow-flowered mallee facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Yellow-flowered mallee |
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| E. flavida flower buds | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Eucalyptus
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| Species: |
flavida
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| Synonyms | |
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Eucalyptus redunce var. oxymitra Maiden |
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The Yellow-flowered Mallee, officially known as Eucalyptus flavida, is a special type of eucalyptus tree. It is only found in Western Australia. This tree has smooth, grey bark. Sometimes, its bark can be rough and flaky near the bottom.
Its leaves are shaped like a spear. The tree produces long, thin flower buds that grow in groups. When they open, you'll see bright yellow flowers. After the flowers, it grows fruit that looks like a cylinder or a small barrel.
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Contents
What Does the Yellow-flowered Mallee Look Like?
The Eucalyptus flavida is a mallee, which means it's a type of eucalyptus that usually has many stems growing from the ground. It can grow to be about 5 to 15 meters tall. This tree also has a special woody swelling at its base called a lignotuber. This helps it regrow after fires.
Its bark is mostly smooth and grey. However, near the bottom of the trunk, the bark can be rough and brown, peeling off in flakes. The adult leaves are shaped like a lance. They are a slightly shiny, light green on both sides. These leaves are about 6.5 to 11 centimeters long and 0.9 to 1.5 centimeters wide. They grow on a stalk called a petiole, which is about 0.8 to 2.3 centimeters long.
Flowers and Fruit
The flower buds grow in the leaf axils, which are the spots where leaves join the stem. They appear in groups of nine or eleven. Each group of buds sits on a stem called a peduncle, which is about 1 to 2 centimeters long. The individual buds have tiny stalks called pedicels, about 0.2 to 0.3 centimeters long.
When the buds are ready to open, they are long and spindle-shaped. They measure about 2.3 to 2.9 centimeters long and 0.3 to 0.5 centimeters wide. The top part of the bud, called the operculum, is shaped like a cone. It can be up to three times longer than the base of the flower.
The Yellow-flowered Mallee blooms in November and December. Its flowers are a bright yellow color. After flowering, the tree produces woody fruit. This fruit is shaped like a cylinder or a barrel. It is about 1 to 1.1 centimeters long and 0.5 to 0.6 centimeters wide.
How Was This Tree Named?
The Eucalyptus flavida was officially described in 1991. Two botanists, Ian Brooker and Stephen Hopper, gave it its scientific name. They published their findings in a science journal called Nuytsia.
They studied a sample of the tree that was collected near Broad Arrow in 1899. This sample was found by a naturalist named Richard Helms. The name flavida comes from a Latin word meaning "yellowish." This name was chosen because of the tree's yellow flowers.
Where Does the Yellow-flowered Mallee Grow?
You can find the Yellow-flowered Mallee in Western Australia. It grows near granite rock formations. These areas are mostly north and east of the city of Kalgoorlie.
It prefers to grow in red, loamy soils. These soils often contain quartz or calcrete, which is a hard layer of calcium carbonate. This tree is found in the Coolgardie and Murchison biogeographic regions.
