Acronychia oblongifolia, commonly known as white aspen, is a small to medium sized rainforest

Rainforest

Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...

 tree of the Rutaceae

Rutaceae

Rutaceae, commonly known as the rue or citrus family, is a family of flowering plants, usually placed in the order Sapindales.Species of the family generally have flowers that divide into four or five parts, usually with strong scents...

 (citrus) family endemic to eastern Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, distributed from Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

 to Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

. The true aspen

Aspen

Populus section Populus, of the Populus genus, includes the aspen trees and the white poplar Populus alba. The five typical aspens are all native to cold regions with cool summers, in the north of the Northern Hemisphere, extending south at high altitudes in the mountains. The White Poplar, by...

s of the northern hemisphere belong to the genus Populus in the family Salicaceae

Salicaceae

Salicaceae are a family of flowering plants. Recent genetic studies summarized by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group has greatly expanded the circumscription of the family to contain 55 genera....

. A. oblongifolia has green foliage and white succulent fruit appearing over winter to late spring.

Taxonomy

The white aspen was first described by Allan Cunningham

Allan Cunningham (botanist)

Allan Cunningham was an English botanist and explorer, primarily known for his travels in New South Wales to collect plants.- Early life :...

 in 1834 as Cyminosma oblongifolia, before being reclassified as Acronychia oblongifolia by German botanist Gustav Heynhold

Gustav Heynhold

Gustav Heynhold was a German botanist.In 1841, he renamed Arabis thaliana as Arabidopsis thaliana Heynh. in honour of Johannes Thal.His author abbreviation is Heynh.-Works:...

 in 1840. The specific name, from the Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 folium "leaf", refers to the oblong shape of the leaves. Common names include Common Acronychia and Yellow Wood as well as white aspen. The trade name is Hard Aspen.

Description

Acronychia oblongifolia grows as a shrub or medium-sized tree and can reach 27 m (90 ft) in height. The trunk is dark brown and generally smooth, although can have fine wrinkles, fissures or pustules. The leaves are arranged oppositely on the stem and measure 3–12 cm (2–5 in) long and 1–5 cm (0.4–2 in) wide, oblanceolate, leathery, dark green and aromatic. Flowers are 1 cm (0.4 in) across, followed by white, yellow or purplish edible berries, which are round and measure 0.8–1.2 cm (0.3-0.5 in) across, and have a four-lobed apical tuft of hairs. The fruit are ripe between May and November (to January in Victoria) and are consumed by the Green Catbird

Green Catbird

The Green Catbird, Ailuroedus crassirostris is a species of bowerbird found on subtropical forests along the east coast of Australia, from southeastern Queensland to southern New South Wales. Its colouring is emerald green, with faint black markings on the face and white streaks on the neck.Green...

, Regent Bowerbird

Regent Bowerbird

The Regent Bowerbird, Sericulus chrysocephalus is a medium-sized, up to 25 cm long, sexually dimorphic bowerbird. The male bird is black with a golden orange-yellow crown, mantle and black-tipped wing feathers. It has yellow bill, black feet and yellow iris...

, Satin Bowerbird

Satin Bowerbird

The Satin Bowerbird, Ptilonorhynchus violaceus is a bowerbird endemic to eastern Australia.A rare natural intergeneric hybrid between the Satin Bowerbird and the Regent Bowerbird is known as Rawnsley's Bowerbird.-Distribution:...

, Pied Currawong

Pied Currawong

The Pied Currawong is a medium-sized black passerine bird native to eastern Australia and Lord Howe Island. One of three currawong species in the genus Strepera, it is closely related to the butcherbirds and Australian Magpie of the family Artamidae. Six subspecies are recognised...

, Topknot Pigeon

Topknot Pigeon

The Topknot Pigeon is a pigeon native to Australia. It is also known by the name of "Flock Pigeon".-Description:...

, White-headed Pigeon

White-headed Pigeon

The White-headed Pigeon is a pigeon native to the east coast of Australia, belonging to the same genus as the domestic pigeon C. livia....

 and Wompoo Fruit Dove.

Distribution and habitat

Found from Gympie in central Queensland south through New South Wales and into eastern Victoria, its natural habitat is rainforest and rainforest margin. Mostly shrubby, places where Acronychia oblongifolia reaches tree size include the rainforest of the McPherson Range

McPherson Range

The McPherson Range is an extensive mountain range, a spur of the Great Dividing Range, heading in an easterly direction from near Wallangarra to the Pacific Ocean coastline. It forms part of the Scenic Rim on the border between the states of New South Wales and Queensland. Further west of the...

 on the New South Wales/Queensland border, and Mitchell River Gorge

Mitchell River National Park

The Mitchell River National Park is a national park in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. It is approximately 300 km east of Melbourne by the most direct road route, and about 40 km north of Bairnsdale.-Mitchell River:...

 in Victoria.

Cultivation

Acronychia oblongifolia is fairly readily cultivated in a well-drained soil and sunny aspect, and benefits from extra water and fertiliser. It is somewhat frost tender when young. It is propagated by seed or cutting. Reported have a taste akin to orange

Orange (fruit)

An orange—specifically, the sweet orange—is the citrus Citrus × sinensis and its fruit. It is the most commonly grown tree fruit in the world....

, the berries are pleasantly piquant and aromatically flavored, being used in preserves.