Scientific Name : Terminalia muelleri Benth.
Common Name : Australian Almond, Mullers Terminalia
Chinese Name : 澳洲欖仁
Family : COMBRETACEAE
Local distribution status : Exotic species
| Origin | Northern Territory and Queensland. |
|---|---|
| Ecology |
Australian Almond shows a great resilience to drought and windy environments, with its wild population spreading in monsoon forest, coastal forest and sand dunes at elevations below 100 m from sea level in Australia. No country but only Cuba has reported the invasiveness of the tree. |
| Application |
Australian Almond is decidedly ornamental due to its dense foliage and extensive horizontal dimension. The leaves turn red when old, embellishing the city with a scenery of ‘a red spot in the midst of thick foliage’. To maintain a decent tree form, Australian Almond is suggested to plant in solitarily in wide open space. |
| Meaning of names | The generic name Terminalia comes from the Latin word terminus, alluding to its leaves crowned at the apex of branches. The specific epithet Muelleri is named after Ferdinand von Mueller (1825-1896), a prolific German botanist who contributed numerous botanical academic treatises. |
| Relatives of Terminalia | Terminalia is a genus composed of many ornamental trees, including T. mantaly (Madagascar Almond), T. catappa (Indian Almond) and T. mantaly ‘Tricolour’. They are widely planted in parks, gardens and streets. In Hong Kong, Australian Almond is likely the rarest Terminalia, occasionally planted by private sectors such as Hong Kong Disneyland. |
| Growing habit | Deciduous tree. |
|---|---|
| Height | To 10 m. |
| Stem | Erect. Bark blackish dark grey, glabrous. Branchlets terete, stiff, sent out horizontally from the trunk. |
| Leaves | Leaves alternate, crowded at the apex of branchlets. Leaf blade papery, obtuse to obovate, apex acuminate, obtuse or rounded, base cuneate, entire, veins prominent abaxially . |
| Flowers | Andromonoecious. Spikes axillary. Flowers small, sessile, calyx 4-5, white to pink, apetalous. |
| Fruits | Drupes fleshy, ovoid to ellipsoid, akin to a Chinese White Olive, turning purple or purplish red when ripe. |
| Flowering period | / |
| Fruiting period | / |
Scientific name above is based on Hong Kong Herbarium website: https://herbarium.gov.hk/en/hk-plant-database/plant-detail/index.html?pType=species&oID=11093
Scientific names from other databases :
― Plants of the World Online: Terminalia muelleri Benth.
― GBIF: Terminalia muelleri Benth.