Worth knowing:
The evergreen River Red Gum got its name for two reasons: it grows in marshlands and near riverbeds, and secondly because of the red-brown colour of the bark and its red wood that is - due to the neat colouring - all to much used in the furniture manufacturing. Typically for a Eucalyptus plant, the crust peels off and lets the stem with some white parts look like painted. The green leaves contain the well-known essential oil that unfolds strongly, when the leave is broken and keeps pests away. In March and April the Eucalyptus camaldulensis shows attractive, yellow-coloured flowers that are arranged in umbels, and from summer until autumn it produces brown poricidal capsules that stay on the plant. By the way, the Australian Aborigines use the wood of the Eucalyptus plant to make the famous Didgeridoo, a wind instrument.
Natural Location:
The natural habitat of the River Red Gum is alongside many waterways in the marshlands of almost all Australia.
Cultivation:
Seed propagation indoors is possible throughout the year. To increase the germinability, you should keep the bagged seeds in the regular refrigerator for about five days. After that, spread the seeds onto moist potting compost, put just a little compost earth on top and cover the seed container with clear film to prevent the earth from drying out. Don’t forget to make some holes in the clear film and take it every second or third day completely off for about 2 hours. That way you avoid mold formation on your potting compost. Place the seed container somewhere bright and warm with a temperature between 20°C and 25°Celsius and keep the earth moist, but not wet. The germination takes about two to three weeks.
Place:
The River Red Gum prefers a sunny place.
Care:
The River Red Gum is fast-growing and rather thirsty. In terms of tub plant cultivation, this means the necessity of sufficient watering and weekly fertilizing with fluid fertilizer for tub plants. The earth can either be sandy and gravelly or gravelly and loamy, and should be kept continuously moist. A tub plant should be given a taller pot right away, so it can develop its strong tap roots.
During the winter:
In regions with a mild winter, the River Red Gum can be planted out, and can hibernate outdoors with some frost-protection. Tub plants, however, are best be kept in a very bright place with a temperature between 5° and 15° Celsius. Eucalyptus plants grow strongly, but can also easily be pruned in late winter to get a compact shape and height.
Picture credits:
- © © Rosa-Maria Rinkl - CC-BY-SA-4.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Vinayaraj - CC-BY-SA-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
- © Javier martin - Public domain - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/publicdomain/
- © Sydney Oats - CC-BY-2.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0
- © Mattinbgn - CC-BY-SA-3.0 -
- © Javier martin - Public domain - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/publicdomain/
- © Benjamint444 - CC-BY-SA-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
