''Eucalyptus spathulata'', commonly known as swamp mallet, narrow leaved gimlet or swamp gimlet, is a species of

mallet A mallet is a tool used for imparting force on another object, often made of rubber or sometimes wood, that is smaller than a maul or beetle, and usually has a relatively large head. The term is descriptive of the overall size and proport ...

that is endemic to Western Australia. It has a dense crown, smooth, satin-like bark, glossy green, linear leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven, white flowers and cup-shaped to conical fruit.

Description

''Eucalyptus spathulata'' is a low-branching mallet with a dense crown that typically grows to a height of but does not form a lignotuber. The trunk usually has a diameter of but can be even larger for older trees, and it is usually relatively short, sometimes fluted at the base. The bark is smooth, satin-like, greyish brown or reddish brown on the trunk and branches. Young plants have linear leaves that are long and wide and sessile or have a short petiole. Adult leaves are linear, the same shade of glossy green on both sides, long and wide, tapering to a petiole long. The flowers are arranged in leaf

axil A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

s in groups of three or seven on an unbranched

peduncle Peduncle may refer to: *Peduncle (botany), a stalk supporting an inflorescence, which is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed *Peduncle (anatomy), a stem, through which a mass of tissue is attached to a body **Peduncle (art ...

long, the individual buds on pedicels long. Mature buds are oval to spindle-shaped, long and wide with a horn-shaped or conical operculum two or three times as long as the floral cup. Flowering occurs between December and March and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody cup-shaped to conical capsule long and wide with the valves near rim level.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eucalyptus spathulata'' was formally described in 1844 by botanist

William Jackson Hooker Sir William Jackson Hooker (6 July 178512 August 1865) was an English botanist and botanical illustrator, who became the first director of Kew when in 1841 it was recommended to be placed under state ownership as a botanic garden. At Kew he ...

in his book '' Icones Plantarum'', from specimens collected near the Swan River by James Drummond. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

(''spathulata'') is from the Latin word ''spathulatus'', meaning spoon-like or a broad rounded upper part tapering gradually downward into a stalk. Why the name was chosen is unknown. Two subspecies are recognised by the Australian Plant Census: *''E. spathulata'' subsp. ''salina'' D.Nicolle & Brooker is distinguished from the autonym by its larger fruit ( x ); *''E. spathulata'' Hook. subsp. ''spathulata'' has smaller fruit than subspecies ''spathulata'' ( x ).

Distribution and habitat

Swamp mallet is found on flats, broad valley floors, on rises, in and around saline depressions and along the edges of

salt lake A salt lake or saline lake is a landlocked body of water that has a concentration of salts (typically sodium chloride) and other dissolved minerals significantly higher than most lakes (often defined as at least three grams of salt per litre). ...

s in the southern Wheatbelt and inland Great Southern regions of Western Australia where it grows in sandy or sandy-clay soils over granite. Subspecies ''spathulata'' is found in the

Blackwood River The Blackwood River is a major river and catchment in the South West of Western Australia. Course The river begins at the junction of Arthur River and Balgarup River near Quelarup and travels in a south westerly direction through the town ...

and

Pallinup River Pallinup River is a river located in the Great Southern region of Western Australia. It was previously known as Salt River. The Pallinup rises 10 km southeast of Broomehill, and flows in a southeasterly direction toward the coast passin ...

drainage systems. Subspecies ''salina'' is restricted to the more northerly Salt River catchment. The species grows in woodland communities with an understorey that contains a variety of melaleuca species including '' M. acuminata'', '' M. pauperiflora'', '' M. lateriflora'', '' M. brophyi'' and '' M. uncinata'' group. Other associated species include ''

Bossiaea halophila ''Bossiaea halophila'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a dense, erect, many-branched shrub with narrow-winged cladodes, leaves reduced to small scales, and yellow-orange and deep ...

'', '' Gahnia ancistrophylla'' and '' Brachyscome lineariloba'', all well suited to calcareous, saline low-lying areas.

Conservation status

Subspecies ''spathulata'' is classified as "not threatened" in Western Australia by the Western Australian Government

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and en ...

, but subspecies ''salina'' is listed as " Priority Three", meaning that it is poorly known and known from only a few locations but is not under imminent threat.

Use in horticulture

''Eucalyptus spathulata'' has a high to moderate growth rate and can live to over 15 years. It is widely cultivated in southern Australia and can be grown in saline and poorly drained situations. The tree's wood is dense, hard and pale brown in colour and can be used as a source of fuelwood and craftwood. It is planted in gardens as an ornamental and as a windbreak, and produces pollen desirable for apiculture. The bark is rich in tannin and the leaves contain cineole. The tree is both drought and

frost Frost is a thin layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor in an above-freezing atmosphere coming in contact with a solid surface whose temperature is below freezing, and resulting in a phase change from water vapor (a gas) ...

tolerant and can withstand salt laden winds. The tree has also been cultivated in California.

References