Eucalyptus urophylla

Eucalyptus urophylla in forest with Aileu ( East Timor)

Eucalyptus urophylla is a flowering plant in the myrtle family ( Myrtaceae ). It occurs on Timor and the small Sunda Islands. Trivial names are in English " Timor Mountain Gum" or " Timor White Gum " and in Indonesian language " Ampupu " or " Popo ".

Description

Appearance and leaf

Eucalyptus urophylla grows as evergreen tree reaching heights of growth of up to 45 meters. The trunk is limbless up to 30 meters and reached a diameter of up to 2 meters. Under unfavorable conditions, Eucalyptus urophylla grows as a shrub. The bark remains on the entire tree is reddish brown to brown and smooth, sometimes with shallow longitudinal fissures and at the lower part of the stem, it can also be rough.

In Eucalyptus urophylla is available Heterophyllie. The leaves are always divided into petiole and leaf blade. The young specimens of almost constant against leaves have a broadly lanceolate leaf blade. The petioles of adult specimens are longer than in young specimens. An adult specimens is the upper leaf surface and bottom is different colored glossy green. On older trees against the almost constant to change-constant leaves are formed as phyllodes. Your leaf areas are broad - lanceolate with a length of 10 to 15 cm and a width of 5 to 8 cm. and relatively thick. The lateral nerves are barely visible. The cotyledons ( cotyledons ) are wrong - kidney-shaped.

Inflorescence and flower

Page Constantly on a 8 to 22 mm long, flattened in cross-section of inflorescence stem stand together five to eight flowers in a reduced, simple, doldigen inflorescence. The sepals form a calyptra, which drops early.

Fruit and seeds

Each fruit contains four to six seeds. The tiny black seeds are angular or more or less hemispherical.

Occurrence

The natural range of Eucalyptus urophylla are the little Sunda Islands.

Eucalyptus urophylla is often dominant in front of mountain forests, often secondary forests. It grows on hillsides and in valleys on basalt and slate, but rarely on limestone.

Taxonomy

The first description of Eucalyptus urophylla was made in 1977 by Stanley Thatcher Blake under the title Four new species of Eucalyptus in Austrobaileya, Volume 1, Issue 1, pp. 7-9. The type material has the caption " Timor: 20.8 km south of Dili on road to Maubisse (8 ° 38 ' S 125 ° 37 ' E, August 1971 Turnball 210 (FRI, holotype ) )" on. The specific epithet urophylla is composed of the ancient Greek words uro so with extended or schwanzartigem appendages and Phylla for leaf.

Use

The wood of Eucalyptus urophylla is hard and difficult. It is used as firewood, for the production of charcoal and in Timor as a heavy timber for bridges, floors and frame. Logs are used to support the construction and fences.

From the leaf of Eucalyptus urophylla to win a pale yellow eucalyptus oil containing para-cymene. The latter has disinfectant properties and is used in the soaps and cosmetics.