Melaleuca ericifolia

Description

Melaleuca ericifolia is a tall, dense shrub, sometimes a tree growing to a height of 9 m with pale white or brownish papery bark. Its leaves are arranged alternately, sometimes in whorls of three. The leaves are dark green, linear in shape, 5-18 mm long and 0.5-1.7 mm wide.

The flowers are creamy-white in colour, arranged in heads or spikes on the ends of branches which continue to grow after flowering. The spikes are up to 20 mm in diameter and 25 mm long and contain 10 to 40 individual flowers. The petals are 1.2-2.2 mm long and fall off as the flowers age. The stamens are arranged in five bundles around the flower, each bundle containing 7 to 14 stamens. Flowers appear from October to November in the species' native range and are followed by fruit which are woody capsules 2.5-3.6 mm long and 3-5 mm diameter, arranged in oblong cylinders along the stems.

Taxonomy and naming

Melaleuca ericifolia was first formally described by English botanist James Edward Smith in 1797 in Transactions of the Linnean Society of London. The variety Melaleuca ericifolia var. erubescens which was described by botanist George Bentham in Flora Australiensis in 1867 is currently regarded as a synonym of Melaleuca diosmatifolia. The specific epithet (ericifolia) is a reference to the apparent similarity of the leaves of this species to those of Erica in the family Ericaceae.

Distribution and habitat

Swamp paperbark occurs in near-coastal areas of New South Wales south of Port Macquarie It grows beside streams and in coastal swamps in heath and dry sclerophyll forest.

Ecology

This melaleuca has fragrant flowers which attract birds. It is a clonal species and efforts have been made to use this characteristic to increase the efficiency of rehabilitating swampy areas with this species.

Uses

Traditional use

Aboriginal people used the bark of this tree for paintings, blankets, and roofing for shelters. The wood was used for spears, clubs and digging sticks. Oil from the leaves was used for medicine and nectar from the flowers was used to make sweet drinks.

Horticulture

This species is a very hardy, fast-growing screen plant. It is able to withstand permanently wet soil, salt, coastal exposure, shade and moderate frost. Plants may be pruned to maintain them at a more compact size.

Essential oils

Melaleuca ericifolia leaves have been analysed for their oil content and found to contain mostly 1,8-cineole (Eucalyptol) but also significant amounts of α-pinene. The aromatic oil in the leaves has been used for dental and medical preparations and in scented soaps.

Other uses

The foliage of this species has been used for brushwood fencing and in aviaries for nesting sites for species such as finches.

Gallery

File:Swamp Paperbark flower (6256975559).jpg|Flowers File:Melaleuca ericifolia.jpg|Foliage and fruit File:Juvenile Melaleuca ericifolia.jpg|Young specimen File:Black scale on Melaleuca ericifolia 1.jpg|"Black scale" on branch

References

References

1. IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group.. (2020). "''Melaleuca ericifolia''".
2. "''Melaleuca ericifolia''". Plants of the World Online.
3. (2013). "Melaleucas: their botany, essential oils and uses". Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research.
4. (2004). "Melaleucas: a field and garden guide". Reed New Holland Publishers.
5. Costermans, L.. (1981). "Native Trees and Shrubs of South-eastern Australia". Rigby.
6. "''Melaleuca ericifolia''". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney: Plantnet.
7. "''Melaleuca ericifloia''". Yarra Ranges Shire Council.
8. "''Melaleuca ericifolia''". APNI.
9. (1797). "Botanical Characters of Some Plants of the Natural Order of Myrti.". Transactions of the Linnean Society of London.
10. "''Melaleuca ericifolia'' var. ''erubescens'' Benth.". APNI.
11. "''Melaleuca ericifolia''". University of Tasmania.
12. "Swamp paperbark". Victorian government department of environment and primary industries.
13. Greig, D.. (1987). "The Australian Gardener's Wildflower Catalogue". Angus & Robertson.
14. "PhD thesis: Regeneration mechanisms in Swamp Paperbark (''Melaleuca ericifolia'' Sm.) and their implications for wetland rehabilitation". Victoria University, St.Albans, Victoria.
15. (2002). "Indigenous Plants of the Sandbelt A Gardening Guide for South-eastern Melbourne.". Gardners Books.
16. (1983). "Australian native plants: a manual for their propagation, cultivation and use in landscaping". Collins.