Eucalyptus burgessiana, commonly known as the Faulconbridge mallee ash,[1] is a small tree or mallee that is endemic to New South Wales. It has smooth bark, narrow lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flower buds arranged in groups of between seven and eleven, white flowers and barrel-shaped or cup-shaped flowers.
Eucalyptus burgessiana is a mallee or a small tree that typically grows to 7m (23feet) and forms a lignotuber. It has smooth grey, pink, orange, pale brown or grey bark. Young plants and coppice regrowth are densely warty on the lower stem and have leaves that are glossy and bright green on both sides. The young leaves are broadly lance-shaped up to 150sigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long, 50sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide and have a petiole. Adult leaves are narrow lance-shaped to curved, NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide on a petiole NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long. The flower buds are arranged in groups of seven, nine or eleven on an unbranched peduncle NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long, the individual flowers on pedicels NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long. Mature flower buds are oval NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long and NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 wide with a conical to rounded operculum, sometimes with a small point on the tip. Flowering mainly occurs between August and December and the flowers are white. The fruit is a woody barrel-shaped, cup-shaped or urn-shaped capsule NaNsigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 long and wide.[2] [3]
Eucalyptus burgessiana was first formally described in 1972 by Lawrie Johnson and Donald Blaxell from a specimen in Faulconbridge. The description was published in Contributions from the New South Wales National Herbarium.[4] The specific epithet (burgessiana) honours Colin Burgess (1907–1987) who was knowledgeable about the flora of the Blue Mountains.
Faulconbridge mallee ash grows in mallee shrubland between Springwood, Faulconbridge and Jervis Bay.