Eucalyptus denticulata I.O.Cook & Ladiges

Errinundra shining gum, shining gum

Australia: wet forests south of south-eastern New South Wales and highlands of eastern Victoria, particularly the Errinundra Plateau.

Rare in New Zealand, recorded from a small number of sites, mainly forestry trials; no naturalisation recorded.

South Island of New Zealand only, recorded from a forestry trial in Golden Downs Forest, and from sites on the West Coast, Nelson and Southland.

• A tree to 35 m tall with more or less smooth bark or with a thin stocking of rough grey bark on the base; the smooth bark is predominantly white, cream, yellow, brown, green or grey. Ribbons often present in the crown of the tree.
• Adult leaves that are glossy, green, colour the same above and below or slightly different, alternate, stalked; blade lanceolate to sickle-shaped, to 250 mm long and 25 mm wide, with margin finely toothed, intramarginal vein parallel to and well removed from margin, oil glands few; new growing tips red-brown.
• Juvenile leaves that are opposite, stalkless for many pairs, ovate to lanceolate, to 125 mm long and 45 mm wide, margin smooth or scalloped, blue-green or green.
• Flowers in clusters of 7, in leaf axils, mature buds oblong to ovate to spindle-shaped, about 5 mm long and 3 mm wide, green or red, smooth, bud cap conical to rounded, outer bud cap held and splitting at tip, with inner cap showing through it as bud grows; flowers white.
• Fruit a stalkless or short-stalked woody capsule, cup-shaped, barrel-shaped or cylindrical, to 7 mm long and 6 mm wide, disc descending below the capsule rim, valves 3 or 4, projecting above the rim or near rim level.

Tree to 35 m tall.

Bark smooth except for some loose rough grey, black or brown bark at base of trunk; smooth bark white, cream, yellow, brown, green or grey, horizontal black scars usually present on trunk, often ribbons of shed bark hang in the upper branches. Hairs and adventitious roots absent. Young stems square in cross-section and prominently winged; may be slightly waxy grey-white.

Adult leaves alternate, stalked, blade lanceolate to sickle-shaped, 130–250 mm long, 14–25 mm wide, base tapering to stalk, margin toothed, glossy, green, colour the same above and below or slightly different, hairless; side-veins usually at a narrow angle or sometimes wider to midrib, vein reticulation moderate to dense, intramarginal vein parallel to and well removed from margin, oil glands few; new growing tips red-brown, not waxy grey-white; leaf stalk 15–30 mm long.

Juvenile leaves opposite, stalkless for many pairs, ovate to lanceolate, 50–125 mm long, 17–45 mm wide, margin smooth or scalloped, blue-green or green.

Flowers in clusters of 7, in leaf axils, stalk of cluster angular to somewhat flattened, 5–15 mm long. Mature buds free, oblong to ovate to spindle-shaped, about 5 mm long, about 3 mm wide, green or red, smooth, angled longitudinally, bud cap conical to rounded, outer bud cap held and splitting at tip, with inner cap showing through it as bud grows; flowers (stamens) white; in mature open flowers, petals and sepals absent. Main flowering period: summer to autumn.

Capsules woody, stalkless or short-stalked (stalks 0–2 mm long), cup-shaped, barrel-shaped or cylindrical, 5–7 mm long, 4–6 mm wide, may be faintly angled longitudinally, disc descending below the capsule rim, valves 3 or 4, projecting above the rim or near rim level.

Eucalyptus denticulata belongs in a group of eucalypts having juvenile leaves that are large, stalkless, waxy grey-white or not, opposite for many pairs on square, winged stems, small buds in clusters of seven and small fruit with descending disc. Similar to E. nitens,E. denticulata differs in the less conspicuous, narrower juvenile leaves, the shorter period of juvenility, and the toothed margins of the adult leaves. The buds of E. denticulata do not shed the outer bud cap as in E. nitens but have an indefinite “scarring” only at the tip.

In E. denticulata the juvenile stage is less prolonged, the adult leaves are toothed along the edges with lenticels (pores on the leaf margins) whereas in E. nitens the leaves are smooth-edged, and the outer bud cap does not shed as a whole cone but appears to be persistent with a reduced, somewhat deformed, inner bud cap at the tip (outer bud cap completely shed leaving a bud cap scar in E. nitens). In situations where both E. nitens and E. denticulata occur near each other, there is some intergradation.

Eucalyptus is a genus of nearly 800 species, most of which are endemic to Australia, with a few species extending to parts of Malesia and as far north as the Philippines.

• EUCLID
• GBIF
• iNaturalist NZ
• PlantNET: New South Wales Flora Online
• Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
• VicFlora: Flora of Victoria