Scientific Name: Eucalyptus regnans
Common Name: giant ash
Family Classification (Clade): Eudicots
Family: Myrtaceae
Form Description: Tree with a shaft-like trunk which, in mature tees, is buttressed at the base. Leaves: Juvenile – asymmetrical and petiolate. Adult – lanceolate, asymmetrical, glossy green. Bark: Smooth, streaked grey sheds in long strips often caught in branches.
Height (m): 50 – 80
Flowers: Often 2 umbels together in an axil, each with 7-16 flowers.
Fruit: Woody capsules – funnel-shaped with a level disc, relatively thin walls and usually 3 small valves.
Municipality
Plant Communities
Habitat Notes
Found on well-drained sites with moderate fertility and high rainfall, usually in sheltered valleys in the south and Central Plateau but not on the west coast.
Site Tolerance
Moist
Soil Tolerance
Clay, Fertile, Loam, Well-drained
Frost Tolerance
Tender
General Notes
Fast growing. The tallest known flowering plant in the world. Bee attracting. An important source of timber marketed as ‘Tasmanian Oak’; also used extensively as a raw material for newsprint pulp. Also suitable for firewood. Will not coppice after damage by fire or after felling.
Propagation Calendar
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Flowering Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec -
Seed Collecting Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec -
Sowing Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec -
Cutting Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Propagation Method
Seed Information
Seed Collection
Collect capsules and store in paper bags until valves open to release seed. Produces a heavy seed crop every 4 years.
Seed Treatment Method
Cold Some species require exposure to cold before they germinate. These species are best sown in early winter and left to germinate in a shade house.
Seed Storage Life
10 years dry stored in refrigerator at 4°C
Seed Treatment Notes
Suitable for direct seeding. Otherwise will germinate best after stratification at 3-5°C for 4 weeks. Although not as successful as stratification, treatment of seed with gibberallic acid or a 15 per cent solution of potassium nitrate for 48 hours can overcome the need for cold storage. 6-8 weeks to pricking out.
Germination Time
2-4 weeks