About Eucalyptus baueriana Schauer
Eucalyptus baueriana Schauer, commonly known as blue box, is a tree that typically reaches around 20 metres (66 feet) in height. It sometimes grows as a small tree or mallee only 12 metres (39 feet) tall, and it forms a lignotuber. Persistent light grey, fibrous or flaky bark with whitish patches covers the trunk and larger branches. Higher branches have smooth grey bark that is shed in short ribbons. Young plants and coppice regrowth have broad egg-shaped to almost round leaves, 35–60 mm (1.4–2.4 in) long and 39–80 mm (1.5–3.1 in) wide. Mature trees often retain juvenile leaves in their crown. Adult leaves are egg-shaped, 53–105 mm (2–4 in) long and 23–52 mm (0.9–2 in) wide, borne on a 18–43 mm (0.71–1.7 in) long petiole. Leaves are the same dull or glossy green shade on both surfaces, and sometimes have a whitish bloom. Flowers grow in groups of seven in leaf axils, on an unbranched peduncle 5–11 mm (0.20–0.43 in) long, with individual buds attached to a 1–5 mm (0.039–0.20 in) long pedicel. Mature buds are oval to diamond-shaped, 3–6 mm (0.12–0.24 in) long and 3–4 mm (0.1–0.2 in) wide, with a conical operculum. Flowering occurs mainly from September to December, and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody conical capsule, 4–7 mm (0.16–0.28 in) long and 4–7 mm (0.2–0.3 in) wide, with its valves enclosed. This species grows in woodland in near-coastal areas of New South Wales from south of Putty to regions near Melbourne in Victoria. Chippendale reported the species in the Flora of Australia also occurring near Stanthorpe in Queensland, and in the Glen Innes-Armidale area. Subspecies deddickensis is restricted to two isolated populations on the banks of the Deddick River in far north-eastern Victoria, and subspecies thalassina is restricted to the Werribee River catchment near Bacchus Marsh.
