Rose Gum

Scientific Name:
Eucalyptus grandis

Other Names and Species:
Flooded gum
Rose gum
Scrub gum

Evergreen tree 40-60 m high with a tall straight trunk and 1-2 m in diameter. Crown spreading and thin in open; small and compressed in dense plantations. Bark white, gray or green, smooth, shedding in long narrow strips. Leaves alternate, lanceolate, 10-20 cm long, 2-4 cm wide, acuminate, inaequilateral, wavy, glabrous. Umbels single at leaf base, 2.5-3 cm long with flattened stalk of 12 mm. Flowers 5-12, short-stalked or stalkless. Buds pyriform, 10 mm long, 5 mm wide.

Stamens many, threadlike, white, anthers oblong with large round gland. Pistil with inferior 4-6-celled ovary. Capsules several, short-stalked, pyriform or conical, 8 mm long, 6 mm wide (Little, 1983). A large fast growing hardwood of the east coast from the Hunter River in New South Wales to north Queensland.

Weight:
Can vary with maturity of the wood, with an average of about 800 kg/m³ at 12 % moisture content; approximately 1.2 m³ of seasoned sawn timber per tonne.

Use:
As sawn timber in general house framing, cladding, internal and external flooring, mouldings, linings, joinery, fascia and barge boards. Internal quality furniture, outdoor furniture, joinery, carving, turnery. Structural plywood, boat building (framing components, planking, decking). Has been used for boat oars, dowel rods, broom handles, brush ware, fruit cases.

General characteristic:
Heartwood pink to pale red-brown. Sapwood not always clearly differentiated. Texture moderately coarse but even. Grain Straight. The activity of a borer which makes “scribbles” in the wood, and grub holes made by a large wood moth which lead to staining, often mar the appearance of the furniture.

Working properties:
Relatively easy to work. is not overly difficult to saw properly. This takes both nailing and gluing well it has possibilities for veneer which glues well but is prone to end splits.The wood accepts stain and paint well, and polishes to a quality finish.

Drying and shrinkage:
It is easy to dry. Shrinkage about 4 percent radial, 7 percent tangential, Inclined to surface check. Shrinkage to 12% MC. 7.2 % (tangential); 4.0 % (radial). Unit shrinkage. 0.34 % (tangential); 0.25 % (radial). These values apply to timber reconditioned after seasoning.

Durability:
Heartwood classified as moderately durable, but less mature wood is only suitable for internal applications. Sapwood resistant to lyctid borer attack; it is readily accepts preservative impregnation but penetration of heartwood is negligible using currently available commercial processes.

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