Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Gum tree?


I love this tree. It is a Eucalyptus tree. But I am American. My knowledge of Eucalyptus comes from seeing various bunches of dried (and dyed?) Eucalyptus leaves in too-smelly craft stores or in the houses of women who hang a wreath for every season.

But these guys are the real deal. They could probably tell me whether there are actually pink Eucalyptus trees Down Under, and might even be offended to see what Americans are doing with the "Gum tree" leaves. Or am I showing my ignorance? Is this type of Eucalyptus even called a Gum Tree?

From what I can tell, this tree is a Eucalyptus Cinerea, also called an Argyle apple, Silver-leaved Stringybark or Mealy Stringybark. It's so pretty. And less than 50 steps away from my front door.



3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow. Eucalyptus in NC...who knew? Feed it to Kevin.

Gardeners said...

You're right about species. Gum tree refers to the gummy sap that is one of the characteristics of the tree. But not all eucalypts produce the stuff, and some seem to leak it everywhere. I've seen a eucalypt in a museum garden in Stockholm Sweden. That you have one down your street is not at all surprising.

electronic cigarette said...

Eucalyptus tree is one of the most usefu; trees for me.

To gardeners: Thanks for the information