''Gaudium trinervium'', commonly known as flaky-barked tea-tree, slender tea-tree or paperbark tree, is a species of shrub or small tree that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to eastern Australia. It has papery bark that is shed in thin, flaking layers, narrow elliptic to broadly egg-shaped leaves with the narrower at the base, white flowers and silky-hairy fruit that falls from the plant when mature.

Description

''Gaudium trinervium'' is a shrub or small tree that typically grows to a height of and has papery bark that is shed in thin, flaking strips. The leaves are narrow elliptical to broadly egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, long and wide, the tip usually blunt and the base tapering to a short

petiole Petiole may refer to: *Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem *Petiole (insect anatomy) In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, and ...

. The flowers are white, about wide and arranged singly or in pairs on the ends of short side shoots. The floral cup is densely covered with silky hairs, about long tapering to a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

of variable length. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s are also hairy, oblong to triangular, about long, the five petals long and the

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s long. Flowering mostly occurs from September to October near the coast and from November to December on the tablelands. The fruit is a capsule wide with the remains of the sepals attached and that falls the plant at maturity.

Taxonomy

This tea-tree was first described in 1790 by John White who gave it the name ''Melaleuca trinervia'' and published the description in his ''Journal of a Voyage to New South Wales''. In 2023,

Peter Gordon Wilson Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

transferred the species to the genus ''Gaudium'' as ''G. trinervium'' in the journal ''

Taxon In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...

''.

Distribution and habitat

Flaky-barked tea-tree mainly grows in forest but is also found in heath and scrub, especially among sandstone rocks. It occurs on the coast and tablelands south from

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. In the , the population of Rockhampton was 79,293. A common nickname for Rockhampton is "Rocky", and the demonym of Rockhampton is Rockhamptonite. The Scottish- ...

in Queensland through eastern New South Wales in near coastal scrubland and woodland in far eastern Victoria.

Use in horticulture

''Gaudium trinervium'' is a hardy, although not showy plant, the bark being its most unusual feature. It can be propagated from seed or from cuttings and is frost hardy.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4460550 trinervium Myrtales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Flora of Victoria (state) Plants described in 1790 Taxa named by John White (surgeon)