Green dumosa mallee facts for kids

Eucalyptus phenax, often called the green dumosa mallee or white mallee, is a special type of eucalyptus tree. It only grows naturally in southern Australia. This tree has smooth bark and long, thin adult leaves. Its flower buds grow in groups of seven or nine. When it blooms, it has pretty white flowers. Later, it produces cup-shaped or cylinder-shaped fruits.

What Does the Green Dumosa Mallee Look Like?

• Eucalyptus phenax is usually a mallee, which means it's a shrub or small tree. It often has many stems growing from the ground.
• It typically grows to be about 3 to 8 meters (10 to 26 feet) tall.
• This plant has a special woody swelling at its base called a lignotuber. This helps it regrow after things like bushfires!
• Its bark is smooth and creamy grey. It peels off in long strips, like ribbons.
• Young plants and new shoots (called coppice regrowth) have egg-shaped or lance-shaped leaves. These leaves are about 40 to 90 millimeters (1.5 to 3.5 inches) long and 9 to 30 millimeters (0.3 to 1.2 inches) wide.
• Adult leaves are shiny green on both sides. They are lance-shaped, measuring 50 to 120 millimeters (2 to 4.7 inches) long and 8 to 35 millimeters (0.3 to 1.4 inches) wide.
• These leaves grow on a stalk called a petiole, which is 7 to 30 millimeters (0.3 to 1.2 inches) long.
• The flower buds grow where the leaves meet the stem. This spot is called a leaf axil.
• The buds usually appear in groups of seven or nine. They grow on a stalk called a peduncle, which is 3 to 18 millimeters (0.1 to 0.7 inches) long.
• Some buds are directly attached (called sessile), while others have tiny stalks up to 3 millimeters (0.1 inches) long. These tiny stalks are called pedicels.
• When the buds are ready, they are cylindrical to oval. They are 7 to 11 millimeters (0.3 to 0.4 inches) long and 4 to 6 millimeters (0.1 to 0.2 inches) wide.
• Each bud has a cap called an operculum, which can be conical or rounded.
• Eucalyptus phenax flowers between October and May. Its flowers are white.
• After flowering, the plant produces a woody fruit. This fruit is a capsule that is cup-shaped to cylindrical. It measures 4 to 10 millimeters (0.1 to 0.4 inches) long and 5 to 8 millimeters (0.2 to 0.3 inches) wide.

How Did It Get Its Name?

• The Eucalyptus phenax was officially named in 1996.
• It was named by two scientists, Ian Brooker and Andrew Slee. They used samples collected by Dean Nicolle in 1985 near Tailem Bend.
• The second part of its scientific name, phenax, comes from an ancient Greek word. It means "imposter" or "fake."
• This name was chosen because people used to think this species was actually Eucalyptus anceps. So, it was like an "imposter" of that other species!

Different Types of Eucalyptus phenax

• In 2000, Dean Nicolle described two slightly different types, or subspecies, of Eucalyptus phenax.
• These subspecies are now officially recognized by the Australian Plant Census.
  • Eucalyptus phenax subsp. compressa: This type has longer peduncles (flower stalks), and its flower buds and fruits are larger than the other subspecies.
  • Eucalyptus phenax subsp. phenax: This is the original type of the plant.

Where Does the Green Dumosa Mallee Grow?

• This eucalypt grows in special areas called mallee scrubs.
• You can find it in several parts of Australia. It grows in the southwest of Western Australia, the southeast of South Australia, and the northwest of Victoria.
• It is most common in Western Australia. There, it grows from near Bolgart through the southern wheatbelt region all the way to Esperance.
• The subspecies compressa is found only on the eastern side of Kangaroo Island and on the Fleurieu Peninsula in South Australia.

Is It Safe?

• In Western Australia, the government's Department of Parks and Wildlife has looked at this eucalypt.
• They have classified Eucalyptus phenax as "not threatened." This means it is not currently in danger of disappearing.