Eucalyptus melliodora ( Yellow Box Eucalyptus ) is a medium-sized tree that is native to the eastern states of Australia. The Yellow Box is considered to be the best native source for honey taste and colour. The tree is fast growing, low-maintenance and is both frost and drought tolerant. This species is also grown for the quality of wood it produces which is renowned for its resistance to decay.
Suitable for Cold, Temperate, Mediterranean and Sub-Tropical climates.
A Yellow Box Eucalyptus tree was no further than 750 metres (2500 feet) away from the hypocentre when a nuclear bomb hit Hiroshima, Japan in August 1945. As recently as April 2019, the same tree was still standing.
The timber highly sought after, pale brown, heavy and resistant to decay making an ideal material for use as posts, poles and in constructing bridges.
Growth
Eucalyptus melliodora is an evergreen tree that grows to a height of around 30 metres (98 feet). In the wild, the Yellow Boxes are content with poor soils and low rainfall. They are native to the dry inland regions of Victoria, New South Wales and southern Queensland.
Like most eucalyptus, seeds germinate easily and seedlings can reach a height of around 60 cm (2 feet) in six months. Yellow Boxes grow a lignotuber which is like a deep tap root that generally grows as deep as the tree grows high. After getting the seeds to sprout from cell trays, nurseries often grow the seedlings in forest tubes that cater for the depth of the roots. Once the seedlings reach 30 cm (1 feet) they are ready for transplanting into the ground, as long as frost has passed.
Yellow Box trunks have rough, flaky bark that is smooth and peels off in greyish and yellow colours. Adult leaves are lance shaped and are roughly 140 cm (5 inches) long. Flower buds arrive in spring and white blooms are proliflic throughout the warmer months.
FAMILY:
Myrtaceae
CLIMATE:
Cold, Temperate, Sub Tropical.
TEMPERATURE RANGE:
-5 to 25°C / 23 to 77°F
SOIL TYPE:
Well draining soil.
LOCATION:
Full Sun
HEIGHT:
Up to 30 metres (98 feet)
WIDTH:
Up to 20 metres (65 feet)
pH:
5.5-6.5
GROWTH TYPE:
Evergreen
WATER REQUIREMENTS:
Low
POLLINATION:
Bees.
MATURITY:
10-15 years
GERMINATION RATES:
78%
GERMINATION TIME:
3-4 weeks
SEEDS PER GRAM:
Approximately 70
MEDICINAL QUALITIES:
Yes
WEED POTENTIAL:
No
FACTS ABOUT EUCALYPTUS MELLIODORA (Yellow Box Eucalyptus)
Every year Eucalyptus trees add a new layer of bark and the outmost layer dies and peels off. Many of the species are viewed as ornamentals due to the colour contrasts of the trees trunks and branches.
Eucalyptus trees make up around 75% of Australia’s forests and have adapted to the seasonal bushfires with the ability to re-sprout directly after a fire. Studies have found that many Eucalyptus seeds are triggered by the smoke of fires and that sowing with ash in the soil improves germination rates. Eucalyptus oil is so highly flammable that trees have been known to explode during bushfires.
Many Eucalyptus species are grown worldwide for their honey, essential oils and paper pulpwood. As they are considered fast-growing they are also highly sought after for regeneration, water stability and mining closures.
The word Eucalyptus is from two words from Ancient Greece translated to good conceal or well hidden. This refers to the operulum covering over the flower buds during spring and summer.
During Captain Cook’s third voyage to Australia in 1777, David Nelson collected the first Eucalyptus specimen to reach Europe. Eucalyptus trees in Australia take up an area bigger than New South Wales and over seven times the size of England.
The majority of Eucalyptus species do well in a wide range of climates and most can withstand a light frost of −5 °C (23 °F).
Eucalyptus trees are grown in Algeria, Lebanon, California and parts of Europe to help reduce malaria by soaking up excess water.
