Forest Red Gum

Forest Red Gum (Eucalyptus tereticornis) is a big, fast, genuinely useful Australian shade tree for properties with room to give. It reaches around 20m tall and 12m wide, carries smooth mottled bark and a broad open canopy, and produces cream white flowers that bring honeyeaters and bees in numbers. This is a paddock, acreage and revegetation tree, not a suburban backyard choice.

Why you'll love it

• Shade at speed. It is fast growing for a tree of this size, so the canopy starts doing real work within a handful of years.
• It copes with extremes. Frost hardy, drought tolerant, heat tolerant, wind tolerant and able to handle periods of wet feet, which few large trees manage together.
• Serious habitat value. The nectar rich flowers feed honeyeaters and lorikeets, and older trees develop the hollows native birds nest in.
• An iconic native form. Smooth mottled trunk, open crown and grey green foliage give it presence in an open landscape.

Where it works best

Shade trees. Give it a paddock, a large lawn or an open rural block. Allow at least 12m of clear width and keep it well back from buildings, pipes and paving.

Windbreaks. Plant 8m to 10m apart in a row along an exposed boundary. A double staggered row filters wind rather than blocking it, which is what a working property needs.

Feature planting. A single tree in an open landscape reads well from a distance, and the trunk becomes the feature as the bark sheds each year.

Growing Forest Red Gum in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun and plenty of space. The climate range is wide: tropical, subtropical, warm temperate and cool temperate gardens all suit it, and it is frost hardy, so cold districts are no barrier.

Soil. Adaptable across most soil types. Unusually for a tree this size it tolerates wet feet, so a damp gully or ground that floods periodically will not kill it, though it grows fastest in deeper soil.

Water and feed. Water deeply through the first two summers, then it is drought tolerant and needs nothing. Feed lightly with a low phosphorus native fertiliser in the first few springs only.

Pruning. Lift the lower limbs for clearance while the tree is young and remove damaged wood. Like most large eucalypts it can shed limbs in age, so do not site it over a house, a driveway or an area where people sit.

What to expect when it arrives

Three sizes are sold: 200mm in packs of six, 300mm, and 45L. The 200mm and 300mm plants are young and establish quickly, and for revegetation or a long windbreak they are the sensible buy. A 45L tree gives a head start of a couple of seasons.

Eucalypts establish better when planted small, so do not assume the largest option is fastest to a shade canopy. Plants are delivered Australia wide, delivery from $29.95, and advanced and large stock is freighted at cost. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Choosing shade trees for farm paddocks
• Plants suited to windbreaks
• Top bird attracting native plants
• Browse Australian native trees

Common questions

How far from the house should I plant it?

Well back. At 20m tall and 12m wide it needs distance from buildings, pipes and paving, and large eucalypts shed limbs as they age. Treat 15m as a sensible minimum on an open block.

How far apart for a windbreak?

Eight to ten metres apart in a row. A double staggered row at that spacing filters the wind, which protects better than a solid barrier that pushes turbulence over the top.

Will it survive wet or flood prone ground?

Better than most trees its size. It tolerates wet feet and handles ground that floods periodically, which is why it turns up naturally along creek flats.

Is it suitable for a suburban backyard?

Honestly, no. This is a forest tree and a standard block cannot give it the room or the setback it needs. For a suburban garden choose a small flowering gum instead.