Eucalyptus scoparia

Eucalyptus scoparia is a rare species that deserves to be better known. Forming a medium-sized tree, with a spreading or rounded crown, it charms with its harmonious proportions, and even more so with its unique bark. Smooth to the base of the trunk, it takes on a superb white hue, sometimes marked with grey, or orange during extreme heat. Its evergreen foliage of a beautiful, slightly shiny green and its white flowering also contribute to the ornamental interest of this tree. Rather easy to grow due to its good adaptability to different living conditions, it only dislikes excessive limestone or poorly drained soils.

Eucalyptus are members of the large Myrtaceae family, mainly represented in the tropics and warm temperate regions. With 800 species almost all native to Australia, the Eucalyptus genus is remarkable for its great diversity, from bushes of a few metres to giants nearing 100 m (328 ft 1 in) in height.
Eucalyptus scoparia is among the small to medium-sized species, forming a tree 12 to 15 m (39 ft 5 in to 49 ft 2 in) in height, and 8 to 10 m (26 ft 2 in to 32 ft 10 in) in width. It originates from a very restricted geographical area, where the states of Queensland and New South Wales meet, in eastern Australia. It gets its name of the White Gum of Wallangara from a locality on a granitic and rocky plateau, at almost 900 m (2952 ft 10 in) altitude. It has a moderately hot climate in summer, with a well-marked cool season for 5 months of the year, with frost periods displaying records of -8°C (17.6 °F) to -10°C (14 °F). However, there is no marked dry season, and rainfall is comparable to our temperate humid zones in Europe, with about 800 mm/year, far from tropical rainfall. These characteristics therefore make it a species perfectly acclimatisable.
Eucalyptus scoparia forms a tree of beautiful stature, with a slender trunk, carrying a conical to rounded, spreading crown. It is particularly attractive because of its powdery white bark, smooth from the base of the trunk to the branches, slightly peeling off to form grey flakes. In summer, during heat waves, it can also take on an orange hue, further enhancing its ornamental interest. Possessing a lignotuber, a subterranean formation rich in starch intended to rebuild the aerial part in case of destruction (by fire in particular), it has the ability to regrow from the stump, with many axillary buds then developing in all directions.
Its shiny green foliage is particularly thin and also very graceful. It has juvenile foliage, with sessile, opposite, linear leaves, about 4 to 8 cm (1.6 to 3.1 in) long by 0.6 to 1.8 cm (0.2 to 0.7 in) wide, and adult foliage, alternate, petiolate, of 6 to 16 cm (2.4 to 6.3 in) long by 0.5 to 1.5 cm (0.2 to 0.6 in) wide. From November to January in Australia, small white flowers appear grouped in axillary umbels of 7 floral buds. Like in other species, it is the protruding stamens that we admire, the flowers being petal-less. They then evolve into small fruits devoid of ornamental interest.
This Eucalyptus is undemanding in terms of soil type, even tolerating limestone in reasonable proportions, but preferring neutral, or even acidic soils. However, it needs a well-drained soil and a sunny exposure. Under these conditions, it will adapt easily, accepting most ordinary soils, moist to not too dry.

This beautiful Eucalyptus with its magnificent bark will find a place in exotic-inspired scenes and in contemporary gardens, with its delicately artful foliage. It is part of the circle of trees with the most beautiful barks, alongside the Cinnamon Maple (Acer griseum), Prunus serrula with its mahogany red trunk, Betula albosinensis 'Fascination', a Chinese Birch with orange tones, just like Prunus maackii Amber Beauty, not to mention the fascinating "snake skin" Maples, Acer davidii 'Viper.