Eucalyptus Aromaphloia Pryor & Willis ̵1 a Redefinition of Geographical and Morphological Boundaries

Abstract

Adult and seedling morphological data collected for 37 populations referred to Eucalyptus aromaphloia Pryor & Willis have been analysed using a range of multivariate classification and ordination techniques. The analysis of adult leaf, bud and fruit morphology revealed only a subtle pattern of geographical variation of limited diagnostic significance. Differentiation in terms of seedling morphology was more marked, and four groups were identified. A relatively high incidence of character segregation in progeny from individual trees was observed and.the implications of this are discussed.

Two of the four groups encompass seedlings with non-glaucous, narrow juvenile leaves and round stems. The first group comprises populations from the Little Desert and the Grampian Ranges west of the Mt William Range. The juvenile leaves are linear, sessile for many nodes and often become falcate after 15-20 nodes. The second group is a single population from east of Rylstone, north-west of Sydney. The juvenile leaves are lanceolate and become petiolate but not falcate after the 15th leaf node. This population was previously referred to E. corticosa L. Johnson.

The third group is similar to the type of E. aromaphloia and populations were found only in west- central Victoria, from the Mt William Range in the Grampians east to the Brisbane Range near Melbourne. Seedlings are characterised by round stems and ovate, glaucous juvenile leaves that are sessile or subsessile for many leaf nodes. Thus E. aromaphloia s. str. has a more restricted distribution than previously described.

The fourth group comprises populations from eastern Victoria where the juvenile leaves are non- glaucous, broad-lanceolate, distinctly petiolate by the 11th node and the stems are often square.