Common name: Red turpentine

Red Turpentine is a large timber tree originating in Australia, its natural range limited to areas of subtropical rainforests on the east coast of the continent, extending from near Batemans Bay in the south to the Atherton Tablelands in the north. It also occurs as an introduced tree species in the mountains of Jamaica, on the island of Oahu, in Hawaii and in upcountry parts of Sri Lanka, in the vicinity of Nuwara Eliya.

It is a fast-growing tree and may reach heights of up to 50 m (165 ft) in native forests, with a trunk diameter of 1.5 m (5 ft), though it is more typically 20 to 30 m (65 to 98 ft) tall. On sites with fertile soil and adequate moisture, it develops a straight, well-formed trunk with minimal tapering and short branches forming a narrow, compact crown. The bark is grey or reddish-brown, thick, fibrous and stringy with deep longitudinal furrows.

Leaves are elongated oval, 6 to 13 cm (2.5 to 5 in) long, dark, dull green on top, underneath whiteish and finely hairy. They are arranged in whorl-like groups of four along the ends of the branches and remain on the tree in all seasons.

Flowers are small with long white filaments, grouped in few-flowered clusters on branched inflorescences arising at the sides of the branches. They come into bloom in spring and are followed by curiously shaped, fused seed capsules in a rounded shape that reminds of a child's rattle.

Use

Red Turpentine produces a medium-weight to heavy wood in the 700 to 1,000 kg per cubic meter (44 to 62 lbs per cubic ft) range. It is a durable wood with high natural resistance to rot, decay, and attack from wood-boring organisms, including termites and marine borers. This is due mainly to the high silica content of the wood, which also causes the blunting of saws and other wood-cutting tools. 

The reported lifespan of the wood is more than forty years above-ground and up to twenty-five years in-ground. It is also difficult to ignite and, as a result, is one of the world's most fire-resistant timbers. For this reason, it is not suitable for use as firewood.

The heartwood ranges in colour from deep red to red-brown and is fine-grained with an attractive wavy pattern. Well-formed logs are sawn into beams used in heavy construction, including house-frame, bridge and wharf construction, and into planks (lumber) for boat-building, heavy-duty flooring, outdoor decking, interior and exterior joinery and bench-tops.

The tree's narrow form makes it suitable for planting close together to create a tall windbreak and is ideal for parks or large gardens.

General interest

The name Red Turpentine is a misnomer as the tree yields no turpentine. Turpentine, also known as 'Spirit of turpentine', 'Wood turpentine' and 'Oil of turpentine', is an industrial oil obtained through steam distillation of the oleoresins of some conifers, among them tropical conifers such as Caribbean Pine (Pinus caribaea) and Sumatra Pine (Pinus merkusii).

Climate

Grows naturally and has its best development in humid subtropical and tropical mid-elevation climates, generally areas with annual lows of 10 to 19°C, annual highs of 19 to 28°C, annual rainfall of 800 to 2200 mm and a dry season of 4 months or less.

Growing

New plants are usually started from seed, which are tiny and don't require soil covering to germinate but benefit from soaking in water overnight.

Performs best on deep, fertile, free-draining clay, loam and sand soils of a moderately acid to neutral nature, generally with a pH of 5 to 7, and on sites with full to partial sun exposure. It has poor tolerance to soils that are alkaline, shallow or slow-draining.

Problem features

Red turpentine is recorded in at least one reference publication as having escaped cultivation and a weed of the natural environment. However, there does not appear to be any record of it anywhere as a serious weed or invasive species.

Books

• Adams, C. D. 1972, Flowering plants of Jamaica, University of the West Indies, Mona, Greater Kingston

• Boland, D. & Brooker, I. & McDonald, M. W. 2006, Forest trees of Australia, 5th ed., CSIRO Publishing (Ensis), Melbourne

• Chudnoff, M. 1984, Tropical timbers of the world, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington, D.C.

• Cribb, A. B. & Cribb, J. W. 1982, Useful wild plants in Australia, William Collins, Sydney

• Crossman, M. & Simm, J. & Great Britain. Dept. of Trade and Industry & HR Wallingford (Firm) & Environment Agency (Great Britain) 2004, Manual on the use of timber in coastal and river engineering, Thomas Telford, London

• Holliday, I. 2002, A field guide to Australian trees, 3rd revised editon, New Holland Publishers, Frenchs Forest, New South Wales

• Little, E. L. & Skolmen, R. G. 1989, Common forest trees of Hawaii (native and introduced), Agricultuural Handbook No. 679, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C.

• Macmillan, H. F. 1943, Tropical planting and gardening : with special reference to Ceylon, 5th ed, Macmillan Publishing, London

• Macoboy, Stirling 1982, Trees for flower and fragrance, Lansdowne Press, Sydney

• Porter, T. 2012, Wood : identification & use, Compact edition, Guild of Master Craftsman Publications, Lewes, East Sussex

• Randall, R. P. 2002, A global compendium of weeds, R.G. and F.J. Richardson Press, Melbourne

• Randall, R. P. 2007, The introduced flora of Australia and its weed status, Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management, Glen Osmond, South Australia

• Scheffer, T. C & Morrell, J. J. 1998, Natural durability of wood : a worldwide checklist of species, Forest Research Laboratory, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon