Grampians gum facts for kids

Eucalyptus × alpina, also known as Grampians gum, is a special type of Eucalyptus tree or shrub. It grows only in the Grampians National Park in Victoria, Australia. This plant has interesting bark that is rough and grey near the bottom, and smooth and grey higher up. Its leaves are shaped like wide spears or eggs, and its buds and fruits are quite bumpy! There's a bit of a discussion about its official name, with some experts calling it the Mt Abrupt stringybark.

What it Looks Like

The Grampians gum can grow as a mallee, which is a shrub that has many stems growing from the ground, usually up to about 2 metres (6.5 feet) tall. It can also grow as a small tree, reaching up to 10 metres (33 feet) high.

Its bark is unique:

• Near the bottom of the trunk and lower branches, the bark is grey and feels rough or fibrous.
• Higher up, the bark becomes smooth and greyish.

The leaves change as the plant grows:

• Young plants have wide, egg-shaped or round leaves that are dark green on both sides.
• Adult leaves are shaped like wide spears or eggs. They are also dark green on both sides. These leaves are about 7.5 to 10 centimetres (3 to 4 inches) long and 2.5 to 3.8 centimetres (1 to 1.5 inches) wide. They have a thick stalk, called a petiole, which is about 1 to 2 centimetres (0.4 to 0.8 inches) long.

The flowers grow in small groups:

• The flowers appear in clusters of three to seven.
• These clusters grow on a thick, flat stalk called a peduncle, which is about 2 to 5 millimetres (0.08 to 0.2 inches) long.
• The flower buds are oval or round and very warty (bumpy). They don't have a small stalk (a pedicel) connecting them to the main stalk.
• The fruit is a very warty, bumpy seed capsule. It is about 1.2 to 1.6 centimetres (0.5 to 0.6 inches) long and 1.5 to 1.8 centimetres (0.6 to 0.7 inches) wide.

Its Name and History

The Grampians gum was first officially described in 1838 by a botanist named John Lindley. He wrote about it in a book called Three Expeditions into the interior of Eastern Australia. The information came from plant samples collected during an expedition in 1836 by Thomas Mitchell.

Sometimes, plants can have more than one name, which can be a bit confusing! The Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria calls this species E. verrucata, or the Mt Abrupt stringybark. This shows that even experts sometimes have different ideas about how to name plants.

Where it Grows

The Grampians gum is found almost entirely in the higher parts of the Grampians National Park. It often grows in "pure stands," which means you'll find large groups of only Grampians gum trees in those areas. This plant is "endemic" to the Grampians, meaning it naturally grows only in that specific region and nowhere else in the world.