Ghost Gum, White Gum, Desert Gum, Cabbage Gum
A tropical plant. It prefers light sandy soils. It needs an open sunny position. It can grow in arid or semiarid locations. It is resistant to drought and frost but heavy frosts can kill the plant. It often grows on flats which are occasionally flooded. It will grow on a wide range of soils. It does best with ample moisture. It grows in areas with an annual rainfall between 120-1,520 mm. It can grow in arid places. It suits hardiness zones 11-12.
Synonyms
- Eucalyptus papuana F. Muell
- And in part Corumbia dallachiana or Corymbia aparrerinja
Edible Portion
- Sap or honey, Manna
Where does Ghost Gum grow?
Found in: Africa, Australia, East Africa, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Tanzania
Notes: Parts of the plant have various medicinal uses. There are a 110 Corymbia species mostly originally in Australia. This one is found only in Papua New Guinea and has wrongly been applied to Australia.
Growing Ghost Gum, White Gum, Desert Gum, Cabbage Gum
Cultivation: Plants are grown from seed. It is best to collect seed from the local area as these are better adapted to the conditions there.
Edible Uses: The sap or honey is collected from under the peeling bark and eaten. It also has edible grubs in Central Australia.
Production: Trees are fast growing. Flowering is September to December and fruiting from October to December.
Nutrition Info
per 100g edible portion| Edible Part | Energy (kcal) | Protein (g) | Iron (mg) | Vitamin A (ug) | Vitamin c (mg) | Zinc (mg) | % Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
References
Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 441
Brock, J., 1993, Native Plants of Northern Australia, Reed. p 173
Cronin, L., 1989, The Concise Australian Flora. Reed. p 185
Elliot, W.R., & Jones, D.L., 1992, Encyclopedia of Australian Plants suitable for cultivation. Vol 4. Lothian. p 170
Facciola, S., 1998, Cornucopia 2: a Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, p 141
Hall, N. et al, 1972, The Use of Trees and Shrubs in the Dry Country of Australia, AGPS, Canberra. p 375
Havel, J.J., 1975, Forest Botany, Volume 3 Part 2 Botanical taxonomy. Papua New Guinea Department of Forests, p 246
Hearne, D.A., & Rance, S.J., 1975, Trees for Darwin and Northern Australia. AGPS, Canberra p 61, 15
Hibbert, M., 2002, The Aussie Plant Finder 2002, Florilegium. p 75
Holliday, I., 1989, A Field Guide to Australian Trees. Hamlyn. p 170
Latz, P.K., 1996, Bushfires and Bushtucker: Aboriginal plant use in Central Australia. IAD Press Alice Springs p 193
Lazarides, M. & Hince, B., 1993, Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia, CSIRO. p 105
Molyneux, B. and Forrester, S., 1997, The Austraflora A-Z of Australian Plants. Reed. p 90
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 4th May 2011] (As Eucalyptus papuana)
Telopea 6:405. 1995
Townsend, K., 1994, Across the Top. Gardening with Australian Plants in the tropics. Society for Growing Australian Plants, Townsville Branch Inc. p 197
Townsend, K., 1999, Field Guide to Plants of the Dry Tropics. Society for Growing Australian Plants, Townsville Branch Inc. p 36