Lottah Nursery Tasmania, Australia

Eucryphia species and hybrids

Syn: 'Leatherwood'

Genus consists of several species usually found growing in the temperate regions of Australia and Chile; more recently there have been two additions from the sub-tropical part of Queensland. They make a desirable contribution to the summer flowering garden.

Eucryphia lucida is well known as the source of 'leatherwood' honey in Tasmania, of somewhat strong taste for many peoples' liking. It has produced several highly ornamental variants of which one is listed below.

Summer (and Autumn) flowering shrubs or trees, evergreen with the exception of E. glutinosa, usually bearing single white flowers that are fragrant to varying degrees. Phillips & Rix, refer to a double form of glutinosa but consider that to be inferior to the single form. We list here a number growing at Lottah.

The Australian eucryphia species flourish under acidic conditions with low phosphorus content, and we believe the South American species will likewise do well under similar conditions.

One problem we faced with several species under cultivation was that overly profuse flowering on juvenile plants often had a stunting effect on subsequent growth.

We are currently unable to provide images of the remaining species: Eucryphia mooreii and cordifolia. Likewise we do not have access to some of the attractive E. lucida selections and other hybrids.

Literature: Rix & Phillips, Shrubs; for sources of this genus check M. Hibbert, Aussie Plant Finder 2004.

	E. glutinosa - deciduous shrub with flowers 60 mm across.
	E x intermedia - hybrid of E. glutinosa and E. lucida, flowering a little after the parents but for a longer season that sometimes stretches into mid-Autumn; flowers are smaller at 35 mm across.
	E. jinksii - newly discovered species from the NSW/Queensland border with blossoms 50 mm across flowering in March.
	E. lucida 'Ballerina' - Selected by Woodbank Nursery in Tasmania for its pink flowers 30 mm across; flowers start to open in late December and continue for over two months.
	E. milliganii. Dwarf species, considered by some to be a variant form of E. lucida. Has tiny leaves and correspondingly smaller flowers than lucida.
	E. x 'Nymansay' - natural hybrid of E. cordifolia and E. glutinosa with trifoliate leaves and fastigate growth.
	E. wilkiei. Fairly recently discovered species from Mt. Bartle Frere in Queensland; oddly this has flowered into Winter at Lottah (image taken on 23 June, 2003).

Lilac Nursery Home Catalog

External Link: Australian Plants Online