Flindersia bennettiana
Encyclopedia
Flindersia bennettiana is an Australian rainforest
tree in the citrus family
. It is known as the Bennett's Ash, named after the naturalist, Dr. George Bennett.
It occurs mainly in streamside, seaside or subtropical rainforest. The natural range of distribution is from the Clarence River, New South Wales to Bundaberg in south eastern Queensland
.
s. New shoots are green and downy.
The compound leaf stem is 3 to 10 cm long, mostly flattened on the top part, with two sharp edges. Leaf mid rib, lateral and net veins seen above and below. 15 to 20 pairs of lateral veins are present.
s from February to August. Flowers with a dough like scent. Panicles grow from the forks of leaves or at the end of branchlets. The fruit is a brown woody capsule, with blunt prickles. 4 to 8 cm long. Opening up in 5 valves. Each valve has a woody middle divide, and on each side are two or three seeds. The wind blown seeds mature from November to February.
Rainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...
tree in the citrus family
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...
. It is known as the Bennett's Ash, named after the naturalist, Dr. George Bennett.
It occurs mainly in streamside, seaside or subtropical rainforest. The natural range of distribution is from the Clarence River, New South Wales to Bundaberg in south eastern 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...
.
Description
A tree up to 40 metres in height, and a trunk diameter of 90 cm. The trunk is cylindrical and tall with moderately smooth grey bark. The bark features some small bumps and scales. Small branches show distinct leaf scars, and lenticelLenticel
A lenticel is an airy aggregation of cells within the structural surfaces of the stems, roots, and other parts of vascular plants. It functions as a pore, providing a medium for the direct exchange of gasses between the internal tissues and atmosphere, thereby bypassing the periderm, which would...
s. New shoots are green and downy.
Leaves
3 to 10 opposite leaflets per compound leaf. Leaflets 6 to 19 cm long, 1.7 to 8 cm wide. Bright green above, duller below with a blunt leaf tip. Leaves dissimilar at the base, with one part of the leaflet broader and more curved than the other. Leaflet stalk 1 to 4 mm long, but the terminal leaflet has a longer stem, occasionally over 15 to 30 mm.The compound leaf stem is 3 to 10 cm long, mostly flattened on the top part, with two sharp edges. Leaf mid rib, lateral and net veins seen above and below. 15 to 20 pairs of lateral veins are present.
Flowers & fruit
Cream flowers form on paniclePanicle
A panicle is a compound raceme, a loose, much-branched indeterminate inflorescence with pedicellate flowers attached along the secondary branches; in other words, a branched cluster of flowers in which the branches are racemes....
s from February to August. Flowers with a dough like scent. Panicles grow from the forks of leaves or at the end of branchlets. The fruit is a brown woody capsule, with blunt prickles. 4 to 8 cm long. Opening up in 5 valves. Each valve has a woody middle divide, and on each side are two or three seeds. The wind blown seeds mature from November to February.