Eucalyptus polyanthemos ssp. vestita (Red Box)

An excellent, medium sized evergreen tree for urban landscapes. Tolerates drought and changes to growing environment.
Transplants easily with moderate to fast growth rate.
Widespread and common in central and eastern Victoria extending into New South Wales. Found in extensive stands in poor stony and shallow soils, requires well drained soil for good performance.
Two other subspecies; subsp. polyanthemos, found in central NSW, which has mainly smooth bark and subsp. lonigor, a taller growing tree from Bairnsdale east to NSW
Medium evergreen tree with a narrow domed form while young developing to a broad domed crown, sometimes several stemmed. A mature height of about 7-20 m x 5-15 m wide.
Rounded to broadly ovate, slate grey-green to glaucous leaves. Develops a relatively dense canopy at maturity. Terminally held flower buds and fruit in groups of 7 with rounded operculum. White flowers. Finely fissured, dark grey bark persistent to small branches.
Tolerates a wide range of soil conditions including both slightly alkaline and acid soils as long as they are well drained. Tolerant of drought. Moderate to high tolerance for root disturbance/construction impacts. Transplants easily, and is generally free of any serious pests or diseases.
Based on 75% of mature size tree would require approximately 130m2 area or 75m3 root volume (crown projection method).
A widely cultivated tree, well suited to urban landscapes. Can develop multiple trunks, prune to central trunk otherwise little pruning is required. Resistant to major pests.
Good street and open space tree.
Featured Tree© Tree Logic Pty Ltd 2007
Ref:
EUCLID - Eucalypts of Australia. Third Edition 2006, CD-ROM, Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research in assoc. with CSIRO Publishing
Nicole, D. (2006) Eucalypts of Victoria and Tasmania. Bloomings Books

