Common Name: Gympie Messmate

General Information

Eucalyptus cloeziana is an evergreen tree with a dense crown; it usually grows 10 - 25 metres tall in shallower soils, up to 45 metres in deeper soils, with some specimens up to 55 metres having been reported in plantations. The long bole can be up to 150cm in diameter, exceptionally to 300cm[, ].
The tree is sometimes grown in plantations in the tropics as a timber crop - it is among the more important plantation species in Zimbabwe, for example, where it is used for poles and pulping[]

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Australia - central and northern Queensland.

Habitat

A tall, forest tree on deeper, fertile soils; a component of low, open forest on shallower, poorer soils derived from sandstone or granite[].

Properties

Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	45.00 m
Pollinators	Bees, Insects
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Eucalyptus cloeziana is found in the subtropics to the tropics and can be grown at elevations up to 2,350 metres. It grows best in areas where the mean annual temperature is in the range 16 - 27°c, with a mean maximum temperature of the warmest month of 27 - 36°c, and a mean minimum temperature of the coldest month of 6 - 17°c. It prefers a mean average annual rainfall of 700 - 2,000 mm, with a dry season of up to 5 months. The tree is suitable for humid highland conditions, but it is sensitive to anything other than the lightest of frosts[, ]. In tropical Africa it is especially recommended for regions with an annual rainfall of 1,000 - 1,500mm and a dry season of 4 - 5 months[].
It prefers well-drained, neutral to acidic, medium-textured soils[].
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[].
In the savannah zone of Nigeria a mean annual height growth of 1.8 metres was achieved over the first 5 years after planting, with the tallest trees being 12.2 - 15.2 metres tall and 12 - 15cm in bole diameter. In the southern savannah zone of Nigeria the annual height growth in the first 2 years was 2.1 - 2.4 metres, and in the northern savanna zone the tallest 4.5-year-old trees were 14.6 metres tall with a bole diameter of 16.8cm[].
In experiments with Eucalyptus cloeziana in Congo the average height of different provenances was 11.1 - 20.7 metres after 5.5 years[].
Eucalyptus cloeziana generally coppices well[, ].
When grown for poles, coppice rotations of 6 - 12 years are employed[].
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[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

The leaves yield up to 1.9% essential oil, of which two forms have been distinguished: a pinene-rich form (containing up to 78% alpha-pinene) and a tasmanone-rich form (with up to 96% tasmanone).[, ]

The heartwood is yellow-brown; it is not clearly demarcated from the up to 25mm wide band of paler sapwood. The grain is straight, texture fairly fine and uniform. The wood is heavy, strong, very tough, very durable and highly resistant to termites, the sapwood is not susceptible to Lyctus borers. It dries fairly slowly, with a tendency to checking and warping, but with careful handling good results can be obtained. It saws and works remarkably well, which is probably due to the straight grain, but it splits readily; it holds nails and screws well, but pre-boring is necessary; it planes to an attractive finish and polishes well. The wood produces very good poles, having few equals as telephone or transmission poles, due to their form, strength and durability. The wood is also used for construction, cladding, railway sleepers, bridge planking, piers, posts and mine props, and is suitable for flooring, joinery, ship building, vehicle bodies, handles, ladders, sporting goods, agricultural implements and turnery[].
The wood is used for fuel and it can be made into charcoal of good quality[].

Propagation

Seed - pre-treatment before sowing is not needed, but the germination rate is often poor. Seedlings are planted out in the field when they are 4 - 5 months old. Seedlings in the nursery are susceptible to damping off, and they may suffer from termite attacks[].
The seed can be stored for several years under dry, cold and airtight conditions[].

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