Closely related to Eucalyptus camaldulensis, and sometime hybridizing with it in the wild[].

Common Name: Forest Red Gum

General Information

Eucalyptus tereticornis is a fast-growing, evergreen tree with a large, open or fairly dense crown[]. It grows from 18 - 45 metres tall or taller. The bole is usually straight; when growing in the open it will often branch from low down, otherwise it can be unbranched for more than half the tree's height and from 100 - 180cm in diameter[, ].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials. It is a commercial source of timber, harvested from the wild and also cultivated as a plantation crop for wood in a number of tropical and subtropical countries in Asia, Africa and the Americas[, ].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

Australia - Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, north to Papua New Guinea.

Habitat

Found principally in open-forest formation with a number of other eucalypts and on river flats or hill slopes with alluvial or sandy to gravelly soils[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	35.00 m
Growth Rate	Fast
Pollinators	Bees, Insects
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Eucalyptus tereticornis has the widest latitudinal distribution of any species in the genus, occurring over a wide range of climatic conditions from temperate to tropical[]. It is found naturally at elevations from sea level to 1,800 metres[, ], and grows in areas where the mean annual precipitation ranges from 500 - 2,000mm and the dry season can be severe and may extend for up to 7 months. It has been planted successfully in areas where there can be as much as 3,500mm of rain[, ]. The mean annual temperature ranges from 16 - 25°c, with a mean maximum temperature of the warmest month of around 27°c and a mean minimum of the coolest month of 7°c[]. Where it grows naturally, it may tolerate 0 - 15 frosts a year[]. In some areas where it has been planted, the tree has survived occasional frosts to -7°c[, ].
Requires a sunny position. Grows wild in soils that are usually not acidic, are rather rich, moist, alluvial, sandy loams and gravels[]. It prefers a pH in the range 6.5 - 7.5[]. Established plants have considerable resistance to drought, and can also tolerate occasional waterlogging[, ].
The plant develops a lignotuber - this is a woody tuber that starts to develop near the base of seedlings and can become massive in the mature plants of some species. It possesses embedded vegetative buds, allowing the plant to regenerate following crown destruction, for example by fire[].
A fast-growing tree, when planted on favourable sites trees have attained a height of 35 metres in 10 years, even on poorer sites they have managed 15 - 18 metres[].
Yields of wood depend primarily upon humidity. They are highest when trees are grown on the borders of canals and under conditions of irrigation. In irrigated plantations in Africa under good conditions, annual yields of 20 - 25 cubic metres per hectare during the first 15 years have been obtained; the yield then decreases to 10 - 15 cubic metres unless the trees are coppiced[]. On poor sites in Uruguay annual yields of only 6 cubic metres per hectare were achieved in a 16 year rotation[].
When grown in plantations, it begins to produce seed 3 - 6 years after establishment[].
Whilst most Eucalyptus species, grown in small numbers outside their native range, can be an attractive and useful addition to the landscape, certain species (including this one) are more problematic. When grown in monocultures, especially outside their native range, they can become an environmental disaster. They are voracious, especially in their use of water; they are allelopathic, inhibiting the growth of the native flora; they reduce habitats for native fauna; and encourage the worst possible attitudes to land use and conservation[].
For a Eucalypt, this species is considered relatively fire resistant[].
The species coppices vigorously: a 99% rate has been reported from Congo[].
Eucalyptus species have not adopted a deciduous habit and continue to grow until it is too cold for them to do so. This makes them more susceptible to damage from sudden cold snaps. If temperature fluctuations are more gradual, as in a woodland for example, the plants have the opportunity to stop growing and become dormant, thus making them more cold resistant. A deep mulch around the roots to prevent the soil from freezing also helps the trees to survive cold conditions[]. Many members of this genus are remarkably adaptable however, and there can be a dramatic increase in the hardiness of subsequent generations from the seed of survivors growing in temperate zones[].

Edible Uses

The tree is said to produce a nutritious, sweet substance that falls from the leaves like manna[].

The roots can be used by travellers in the desert to provide good drinking water[].

Medicinal

The resin is astringent[]. It is taken internally as an effective treatment for dysentery, working because it is not absorbed at all from the stomach and only very slowly from the intestine, and is thus able to directly treat the lower part of the intestine[].

A decoction of the leaf serves to reduce fever and alleviates pulmonary problems[].

The essential oil (from the leaves?) has shown antibacterial and antifungal activities, and in-vivo analgesic, muscle-relaxant and anti-inflammatory effects in rats and mice[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Planted in shelter-belts as a windbreak and for shade[]. It is a suitable species for reforestation programmes[, ].
The trees are also used in the restoration and immobilization of dunes, to control erosion by wind, and as hedges[]. They can be planted along the banks of rivers to stabilize the soil[].
The tree is a major source of pollen and nectar for bees, producing a caramel-flavoured honey[].

Other Uses

The wood contains 6 - 12% tannin, and the bark 3 - 15%[, , ].

The leaves are one of the sources of the essential oil 'eucalypt oil', and the principal component of the oil in the leaf is cineole (45%)[, ]. The oil yield percentage by fresh weight is 0.9 - 1.4%[]. The leaves yield 0.45 - 3.4% essential oil[]. The essential oil has shown insecticidal activity[].
The wood contains 0.5% essential oil[, ].

Kino (a red substance resembling resin) is obtained from the tree[]. The general colour is brown, and it can readily be reduced to a fairly fine powder between the fingers. It forms a light reddish-brown turbid liquid, leaving a muddy-looking residue of a salmon colour, evidently composed of finely divided particles of resin, wood, and a
gelatinous substance[]. Rich in tannins, it can be used medicinally and for tanning.
The resin oozes naturally from wounds in the trunk and can be tapped by making incisions in the bark.

The heartwood is pale to dark red,and fairly well demarcated from the grey to cream-coloured sapwood. The grain is wavy or interlocked, texture even and fairly fine. The wood has a density of 660 - 1060 kg/m³ at 12% moisture content, but wood from plantations often has a lower density than that from natural stands. The wood has a strong tendency to warp during drying. It is not stable in service. The wood is strong, tough and hard. The wood saws well and works well with hand and machine tools, but it splits easily and the presence of interlocked grain makes it somewhat difficult to finish. It holds nails well and glues well. The wood is durable and has good weathering and wearing properties. In Australia the wood is one of the most resistant to marine borerattack, but it failed after 2.5 - 10 years at the Pacific coast of the United States. The sapwood is susceptible to Lyctusborers. The heartwood is resistant to impregnation with preservatives, the sapwood is permeable[]
The wood is red, hard, heavy, strong, very durable, uniform in texture and has an interlocked grain, which makes it difficult to work[, , ]. It is resistant to marine borer and is widely used as a construction and mining timber[]. It is also used for poles, stakes, boxwoods, bridge timber, railway sleepers and wharves. It is suitable for posts of all sizes, flooring, vehicle bodies, furniture, handles, ladders, sporting goods, agricultural implements, veneer, plywood, core stock, matches, joinery, vats, toys, novelties, turnery and wood-wool[, ].
In India, the most important use of this species is for its good quality pulp and paper. The strength properties of the paper improve after the tree reaches 9 years of age, but the dark colour of the heartwood, in comparison with some other Eucalyptus species, is a disadvantage[]. It is also used for hardboard, fibreboard and particleboard[].
A popular and widely used firewood and charcoal[, ]. The energy value of the wood is17,750–22,000 kJ/kg[].

Propagation

Seed - surface sow late winter/early spring in a sunny position in a greenhouse[, , ]. Species that come from high altitudes appreciate 6 - 8 weeks cold stratification at 2°c[]. Pot up the seedlings into individual pots as soon as the second set of seed leaves has developed, if left longer than this they might not move well. Plant out into their permanent positions in early summer and give them some protection from the cold in their first winter. The seed can also be sown in early summer, the young trees being planted in their final positions in late spring of the following year. The seed has a long viability[].