Eucalyptus foecunda

Eucalyptus foecunda is a mallee that typically grows to a height of 3 m (9.8 ft), occasionally a tree to 5 m (16 ft), and forms a lignotuber. The bark is flaky at the base, otherwise smooth, grey and reddish-brown in colour. Young plants and coppice regrowth have dull green, elliptic to lance-shaped leaves that are 40–80 mm (1.6–3.1 in) and 2–20 mm (0.079–0.787 in) wide. Adult leaves are narrow lance-shaped to narrow oblong, the same glossy green on both sides, 50–95 mm (2.0–3.7 in) and 5–13 mm (0.20–0.51 in) wide on a petiole 5–17 mm (0.20–0.67 in) long. The flower buds are arranged in leaf axils in groups of nine or eleven on an unbranched peduncle 5–13 mm (0.20–0.51 in) long, the individual buds on pedicels 2–5 mm (0.079–0.197 in) long. Mature buds are oval to spindle-shaped, 6–10 mm (0.24–0.39 in) and 3–4 mm (0.12–0.16 in) wide with a conical or beaked operculum 2.5–6 mm (0.098–0.236 in) long. Flowering occurs in August or from January to February and the flowers are creamy white. The fruit is a woody, cup-shaped capsule 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) long and wide.[2][3]

This mallee has a similar appearance to Eucalyptus petrensis but E. petrensis has a more persistent style on the fruit.[4]

Eucalyptus leucophylla was once included in E. foecunda but has broader juvenile leaves, mostly smooth bark and a shorter, more rounded operculum.[3][5]

Eucalyptus foecunda was first formally described in 1844 by Johannes Conrad Schauer and the description was published in Lehmann's book Plantae Preissianae from a specimen collected at Freemantle.[6][7] The specific epithet (foecunda) refers to the prolific flowering of this species.[3]

Narrow-leaved red mallee grows on limy sands near the coast of Western Australia between Lancelin and Mandurah.[3]

This eucalypt is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.[2]

• 
  Illustration from Mueller's Eucalyptographia[8]
• 
  Flowers and buds in Perth

• List of Eucalyptus species