Sydney red gum (Angophora costata)
Description
Angophora costata is a common woodland and forest tree of Eastern Australia, and is known by a variety of names including smooth-barked apple, rose gum, rose apple and Sydney red gum. It grows primarily on sandstone soils, usually on headlands, plateaus or other elevated areas. A. costata differs from the majority of "gum trees" in that it is not a true Eucalyptus, but rather a closely related genus. Unlike the majority of eucalypts, whose adult leaves are arranged in an alternate pattern along the stem, angophora leaves are positioned opposite each other. A. costata is a large, wide and spreading tree, usually of a height between 15m and 25m. The trunk is often gnarled and crooked with a pink to pale grey, sometimes rusty-stained bark. In nature, the butts of broken limbs form callused bumps on the trunk and add to the gnarled appearance. The old bark is shed in spring in large flakes with the new salmon-pink bark turning pale grey before the next shedding. Recent genetic work has been published showing Angophora to be more closely related to Eucalyptus than Corymbia, and the name Eucalyptus apocynifolia has been proposed for this species if it were to be placed in the genus Eucalyptus. Angophora costata grows into a large tree (although it is often stunted or mallee-like) and is characterised by a distinctive orange or pink hue to trunk when bark has been newly shed.The colour fades with time and is a more subdued greyish hue in winter.White flowers occur in summer.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum:
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Class: Magnoliopsida
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Order: Myrtales
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Family: Myrtaceae
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Genus: Angophora
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