Eucalyptus marginata

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Jarrah
Jarrah tree burls 01 gnangarra.JPG
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Eucalyptus
Species:
E. marginata
Binomial name
Eucalyptus marginata
Donn ex Sm. [2]
Subspecies
  • E. marginata subsp. marginata [3]
  • E. marginata subsp. thalassica [4]
Synonyms [2]
  • Eucalyptus floribundaHügel ex Endl.
  • Eucalyptus hypoleucaSchauer
  • Eucalyptus mahoganiF.Muell. orth. var.
  • Eucalyptus mahoganiiF.Muell.
  • Eucalyptus marginataDonn nom. inval., nom. nud.
  • Eucalyptus pedicellataMaiden nom. inval., pro syn.
  • Eucalyptus pedicellataGrimwade nom. inval., pro syn.
Bark Jarrah bark.jpg
Bark

Eucalyptus marginata, commonly known as jarrah, [5] djarraly in Noongar language [6] and historically as Swan River mahogany, [7] is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a tree with rough, fibrous bark, leaves with a distinct midvein, white flowers and relatively large, more or less spherical fruit. Its hard, dense timber is insect resistant although the tree is susceptible to dieback. The timber has been utilised for cabinet-making, flooring and railway sleepers.

Contents

Description

The Looming Relic, the largest jarrah tree The Looming Relic.jpg
The Looming Relic, the largest jarrah tree

Jarrah is a tree which sometimes grows to a height of up to 50 m (160 ft) with a diameter at breast height (DBH) of 3.5 m (11 ft), but more usually 40 m (130 ft) with a DBH of up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in). Less commonly it can be a small mallee to 3 m (9.8 ft) high. [8] Older specimens have a lignotuber and roots that extend down as far as 40 m (100 ft). It is a stringybark with rough, greyish-brown, vertically grooved, fibrous bark which sheds in long flat strips. The leaves are arranged alternately along the branches, narrow lance-shaped, often curved, 8–13 cm (3–5 in) long and 1.5–3 cm (0.6–1 in) broad, shiny dark green above and paler below. There is a distinct midvein, spreading lateral veins and a marginal vein separated from the margin. The stalked flower buds are arranged in umbels of between 4 and 8, each bud with a narrow, conical cap 5–9 mm (0.2–0.4 in) long. The flowers 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) in diameter, with many white stamens and bloom in spring and early summer. The fruit are spherical to barrel-shaped, and 9–20 mm (0.4–0.8 in) long and broad. [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

Taxonomy and naming

Roadside jarrah tree in Darling Range Roadside JarrahTree in Darling Range.jpg
Roadside jarrah tree in Darling Range

Eucalyptus marginata was first formally described in 1802 by James Edward Smith, whose description was published in Transactions of the Linnean Society of London . Smith noted that his specimens had grown from seeds brought from Port Jackson and noted a resemblance to both Eucalyptus robusta and E. pilularis . [14] [15] The specific epithet (marginata) is a Latin word meaning "furnished with a border". [16] Smith did not provide an etymology for the epithet but did note that, compared to E. robusta "the margin [of the leaves] is more thickened". [15]

Distribution and habitat

Eucalyptus marginata occurs in the south-west corner of Western Australia, generally where the rainfall isohyet exceeds 600 mm (20 in). It is found inland as far as Mooliabeenee, Clackline and Narrogin and in the south as far east as the Stirling Range. Its northern limit is Mount Peron near Jurien Bay but there are also outliers at Kulin and Tutanning in the Pingelly Shire. The plant often takes the form of a mallee in places like Mount Lesueur and in the Stirling Range but it is usually a tree and in southern forests sometimes reaches a height of 40 metres (130 ft). It typically grows in soils derived from ironstone and is generally found within its range, wherever ironstone is present. [9] [17] [18]

Ecology

Jarrah is regarded as one of the six forest giants found in Western Australia; the other trees include; Eucalyptus gomphocephala (tuart), Eucalyptus diversicolor (karri), Eucalyptus jacksonii (red tingle), Corymbia calophylla (marri) and Eucalyptus patens (yarri). [19] [20]

Jarrah is an important element in its ecosystem, providing numerous habitats for animal life – especially birds and bees – while it is alive, and in the hollows that form as the heartwood decays. When it falls, it provides shelter to ground-dwellers such as the chuditch (Dasyurus geoffroii), a carnivorous marsupial.

Jarrah has shown considerable adaptation to different ecologic zones – as in the Swan Coastal Plain and further north, and also to a different habitat of the lateritic Darling Scarp. [21]

Jarrah is very vulnerable to dieback caused by the oomycete Phytophthora cinnamomi . In large sections of the Darling Scarp there have been various measures to reduce the spread of dieback by washing down vehicles, and restricting access to areas of forest not yet infected.

Conservation status

Eucalyptus marginata was added to the IUCN Red List as a "near threatened" species in 2019. [1]

Uses

Jarrah blossom Jarrah - Eucalyptus marginata.jpg
Jarrah blossom
Jarrah was commonly used for fencing in Western Australia. JarrahFence gobeirne.jpg
Jarrah was commonly used for fencing in Western Australia.
Jarrah wine rack Jarrah wine rack.jpg
Jarrah wine rack
Second-hand jarrah flooring after 80 grit sanding in New Zealand Jarrah Flooring NZ.jpg
Second-hand jarrah flooring after 80 grit sanding in New Zealand

Jarrah produces a dark, thick, tasty honey, but its wood is its main use. It is a heavy wood, with a specific gravity of 1.1 when green. Its long, straight trunks of richly coloured and beautifully grained termite-resistant timber make it valuable for cabinet making, flooring, panelling and outdoor furniture. The finished lumber has a deep rich reddish-brown colour and an attractive grain. When fresh, jarrah is quite workable but when seasoned it becomes so hard that conventional wood-working tools are near useless on it. [22] It is mainly used for cabinet making and furniture although in the past it was used in general construction, railway sleepers and piles. In the 19th century, famous roads in other countries were paved with jarrah blocks covered with asphalt. [5] [9]

Jarrah wood is very similar to that of Karri, Eucalyptus diversicolor . Both trees are found in the southwest of Australia, and the two woods are frequently confused. They can be distinguished by cutting an unweathered splinter and burning it: karri burns completely to a white ash, whereas jarrah forms charcoal. This property of jarrah was critical to charcoal making and charcoal iron smelting operations at Wundowie from 1948 to 1981. [23] Most of the best jarrah has been logged in southwestern Australia.[ citation needed ]

A large amount was exported to the United Kingdom, where it was cut into blocks and covered with asphalt for roads. One of the large exporters in the late nineteenth century was M. C. Davies who had mills in the Augusta - Margaret River region of the southwest, and ports at Hamelin Bay and Flinders Bay.

The local poet Dryblower Murphy wrote a poem, "Comeanavajarrah" that was published in The Sunday Times of May 1904, about the potential to extract alcohol from jarrah timber. [24]

As of the banning of native logging in Western Australia in 2024, [25] jarrah has become more highly prized, and can only be obtained as recycled timber from sources such as demolished houses and railway sleepers.

Jarrah is used in musical instrument making, for percussion instruments and guitar inlays.

Because of its remarkable resistance to rot, jarrah is used to make hot tubs.

Eucalyptus marginata have been used for traditional purposes as well. Some parts of the jarrah tree were used as a remedy for some illnesses and diseases. Fever, colds, headaches, skin diseases and snakes bites were traditionally cured through the use of jarrah leaves and bark. [26]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Eucalyptus</i> Genus of flowering plants in the myrtle family

Eucalyptus is a genus of more than 700 species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. Most species of Eucalyptus are trees, often mallees, and a few are shrubs. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including Corymbia and Angophora, they are commonly known as eucalypts or "gum trees". Plants in the genus Eucalyptus have bark that is either smooth, fibrous, hard, or stringy and leaves that have oil glands. The sepals and petals are fused to form a "cap" or operculum over the stamens, hence the name from Greek eû ("well") and kaluptós ("covered"). The fruit is a woody capsule commonly referred to as a "gumnut".

<i>Eucalyptus diversicolor</i> Species of eucalyptus endemic to Western Australia

Eucalyptus diversicolor, commonly known as karri, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a tall tree with smooth light grey to cream-coloured, often mottled bark, lance-shaped adult leaves and barrel-shaped fruit. Found in higher rainfall areas, karri is commercially important for its timber.

<i>Eucalyptus cladocalyx</i> Species of plant

Eucalyptus cladocalyx, commonly known as sugar gum, is a species of eucalypt tree found in the Australian state of South Australia. It is found naturally in three distinct populations - in the Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula and on Kangaroo Island.

<i>Corymbia calophylla</i> Tree found in Western Australia

Corymbia calophylla, commonly known as marri, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It is a tree or mallee with rough bark on part or all of the trunk, lance-shaped adult leaves, branched clusters of cup-shaped or pear-shaped flower buds, each branch with three or seven buds, white to pink flowers, and relatively large oval to urn-shaped fruit, colloquially known as honky nuts. Marri wood has had many uses, both for Aboriginal people, and in the construction industry.

<i>Eucalyptus jacksonii</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus jacksonii, commonly known as the red tingle, is a species of tall tree endemic to the southwest of Western Australia and is one of the tallest trees found in the state. It has thick, rough, stringy reddish bark from the base of the trunk to the thinnest branches, egg-shaped to lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and shortened spherical to barrel-shaped fruit.

<i>Eucalyptus patens</i> Species of eucalyptus endemic to Western Australia

Eucalyptus patens, commonly known as yarri or blackbutt, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It has rough bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped leaves, creamy-white flowers and spherical to oval fruit.

<i>Eucalyptus gomphocephala</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus gomphocephala, known as tuart, is a species of tree and is one of the six forest giants of Southwest Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warren bioregion</span> Biogeographic region in southern Western Australia

Warren, also known as Karri Forest Region and the Jarrah-Karri forest and shrublands ecoregion, is a biogeographic region in southern Western Australia. Located in the southwest corner of Western Australia between Cape Naturaliste and Albany, it is bordered to the north and east by the Jarrah Forest region. Its defining characteristic is an extensive tall forest of Eucalyptus diversicolor (karri). This occurs on dissected, hilly ground, with a moderately wet climate. Karri is a valuable timber and much of the karri forest has been logged over, but less than a third has been cleared for agriculture. Recognised as a region under the Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia (IBRA), and as a terrestrial ecoregion by the World Wide Fund for Nature, it was first defined by Ludwig Diels in 1906.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karri forest</span> Tall open forest type

Karri forest is a tall open forest type dominated by Eucalyptus diversicolor (karri), one of the tallest hardwoods in the world.

<i>Eucalyptus cornuta</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus cornuta, commonly known as yate, is a tree species, sometimes a mallee and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It has rough, fibrous bark on all or most of its trunk, smooth bark above, mostly lance-shaped adult leaves, elongated flower buds in groups of eleven or more, yellowish flowers and cylindrical to cup-shaped fruit. It is widely cultivated and produces one of the hardest and strongest timbers in the world.

<i>Eucalyptus megacarpa</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus megacarpa, commonly known by its Noongar name of bullich, is a species of robust mallee or small to medium-sized tree with a scattered distribution in the forests of the south-west of Western Australia. It has smooth bark throughout, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three, white flowers and cup-shaped, bell-shaped or hemispherical fruit.

<i>Armillaria luteobubalina</i> Species of fungus in the family Physalacriaceae.

Armillaria luteobubalina, commonly known as the Australian honey fungus, is a species of mushroom in the family Physalacriaceae. Widely distributed in southern Australia, the fungus is responsible for a disease known as Armillaria root rot, a primary cause of Eucalyptus tree death and forest dieback. It is the most pathogenic and widespread of the six Armillaria species found in Australia. The fungus has also been collected in Argentina and Chile. Fruit bodies have cream- to tan-coloured caps that grow up to 10 cm (4 in) in diameter and stems that measure up to 20 cm (8 in) long by 1.5 cm (1 in) thick. The fruit bodies, which appear at the base of infected trees and other woody plants in autumn (March–April), are edible, but require cooking to remove the bitter taste. The fungus is dispersed through spores produced on gills on the underside of the caps, and also by growing vegetatively through the root systems of host trees. The ability of the fungus to spread vegetatively is facilitated by an aerating system that allows it to efficiently diffuse oxygen through rhizomorphs—rootlike structures made of dense masses of hyphae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jarrah Forest</span> Bioregion in Western Australia

Jarrah Forest, also known as the Southwest Australia woodlands, is an interim Australian bioregion and ecoregion located in the south west of Western Australia. The name of the bioregion refers to the region's dominant plant community, jarrah forest – a tall, open forest in which the dominant overstory tree is jarrah.

The western false pipistrelle, species Falsistrellus mackenziei, is a vespertilionid bat that occurs in Southwest Australia. The population is declining due to loss of its habitat, old growth in tall eucalypt forest which has largely been clear felled for tree plantations, wheat cultivation and urbanisation. Although it is one of the largest Australian bats of the family, the species was not recorded or described until the early 1960s. A darkly colored bat with reddish brown fur and prominent ears, they fly rapidly around the upper canopy of trees in pursuit of flying insects.

<i>Eucalyptus wandoo</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus wandoo, commonly known as wandoo, dooto, warrnt or wornt and sometimes as white gum, is a small to medium-sized tree that is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It has smooth bark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of nine to seventeen, white flowers and conical to cylindrical fruit. It is one of a number of similar Eucalyptus species known as wandoo.

<i>Eucalyptus guilfoylei</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus guilfoylei, commonly known as yellow tingle or dingul dingul, is a species of tall tree that is endemic to Western Australia. The trunk is straight with fibrous, greyish brown bark and it has lance-shaped leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and barrel-shaped fruit.

Eucalyptus virginea is a species of tree that is endemic to the south coast of Western Australia. It has smooth bark, narrow lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, white flowers and cup-shaped fruit.

<i>Eucalyptus doratoxylon</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus doratoxylon, commonly known as the spearwood mallee, spearwood or geitch-gmunt in Noongar language is a species of mallee that is endemic to Western Australia. It has smooth, powdery white bark, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves mostly arranged in opposite pairs, flower buds in groups of seven, white to pale yellow flowers and pendulous, more or less spherical fruit.

Phytophthora multivora is a species of Oomycete, water moulds, identified as a plant pathogen implicated in dieback. It was first isolated in tuart forest of Southwest Australia in a study of the decline of tuart Eucalyptus gomphocephala, jarrah Eucalyptus marginata, peppermint Agonis and banksia species.

<i>Nyctophilus major</i> Species of bat

Nyctophilus major, referred to as a western long-eared bat, is a species found in forests and woodlands of Southwest Australia.

References

  1. 1 2 Fensham, R.; Laffineur, B.; Collingwood, T. (2019). "Eucalyptus marginata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T61913695A61913703. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T61913695A61913703.en . Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Eucalyptus marginata". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  3. ↑ "Eucalyptus marginata subsp. marginata". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  4. ↑ "Eucalyptus marginatasubsp. thalassica". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  5. 1 2 "Jarrah - Eucalyptus marginata". Forest Products Commission - Western Australia. Archived from the original on 26 June 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  6. ↑ "Noongar word list". Kaartdijin Noongar. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  7. ↑ Hewett, Peter Neil. "Information sheet - "Tall Trees"" (PDF). Forests Department Western Australia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 September 2018. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  8. ↑ Nicolle, Dean (2019). Eucalypts of Western Australia - The South-West Coast and Ranges (1st ed.). WA: Scott print. pp. 274–5. ISBN   978-0-646-80613-6.
  9. 1 2 3 Gardner, Charles Austin (1987). Eucalypts of Western Australia. Perth: Western Australian Herbarium, Dept. of Agriculture, Western Australia. pp. 8–10. ISBN   0724489983.
  10. ↑ Wrigley, John (2012). Eucalypts: A Celebration. Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin. p. 60. ISBN   978-1-74331-080-9.
  11. ↑ Lintern, Melvyn; Anand, Ravi; Ryan, Chris; Paterson, David (2013). "Natural gold particles in Eucalyptus leaves and their relevance to exploration for buried gold deposits". Nature Communications. 4: 2614. Bibcode:2013NatCo...4.2274L. doi:10.1038/ncomms3614. ISSN   2041-1723. PMC   3826622 . PMID   24149278.
  12. ↑ "Eucalyptus marginata subsp. marginata". Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  13. ↑ Boland, Douglas J.; Brooker, Ian; McDonald, Maurice W. (2006). Forest trees of Australia (5th ed.). Collingwood, Victoria: CSIRO Pub. p. 520. ISBN   0643069690.
  14. ↑ "Eucalyptus marginata". APNI. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  15. 1 2 Smith, James Edward (1802). "Botanical characters of four New-Holland plants, of the natural order of Myrti". Transactions of the Linnean Society of London. 6: 302. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  16. ↑ Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 157.
  17. ↑ Brooker, Ian (2012). Eucalyptus: An illustrated guide to identification. Chatswood, N.S.W.: Reed New Holland. p. 214. ISBN   978-1-921517-22-8.
  18. ↑ Barrett, Russell (2016). Perth Plants. Clayton South, VIC: CSIRO Publishing. p. 124. ISBN   978-1-4863-0602-2.
  19. ↑ "Eucalyptus gomphocephala". Australian Seed. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
  20. ↑ "Eucalyptus gomphocephala". Plants For A Future. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  21. ↑ Powell, Robert James and Emberson, Jane (1978).An old look at trees : vegetation of south-western Australia in old photographs Perth : Campaign to Save Native Forests (W.A.). ISBN   0-9597449-3-2 – has photographs of significant large old jarrah trees from the Swan Coastal Plain in the late 19th and early 20th centuries
  22. ↑ "Jarrah Timber. (Eucalyptus marginata, Sm.)". Bulletin of Miscellaneous Information (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew). 1890 (45): 188–190. 1 January 1890. doi:10.2307/4118419. JSTOR   4118419.
  23. ↑ Relix & Fiona Bush Heritage and Archaeology. "WUNDOWIE GARDEN TOWN CONSERVATION PLAN" (PDF). Wundowie Progress Association.
  24. ↑ Murphy, Edwin G. "Comeanavajarrah". The Sunday Times (Western Australia). Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  25. ↑ Lynch, Jacqueline; Forrester, Kate (1 January 2024). "Will there still be firewood? How Western Australia's native logging ban could affect you". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  26. ↑ Barrett, Russell (2016). Perth Plants. Clayton South, VIC: CSIRO Publishing. p. 4. ISBN   978-1-4863-0602-2.

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