{"slug":"corymbia-citriodora","scientific_name":"Corymbia citriodora","common_names":["Lemon-scented gum","Spotted gum"],"family":"Myrtaceae","type":"broadleaf_evergreen","mature_height_m":35,"mature_spread_m":15,"growth_rate":"fast","lifespan_years":null,"hardiness_zones":[8,11],"sun":"full","water":"low","soil":"Light loamy or gravelly, well-drained soils; tolerates poor ground","native_range":"Native to coastal and inland eastern Queensland from Cooktown south to Maryborough and north-east New South Wales near Coffs Harbour.","description":"A slender, elegant eucalypt to 50 m with powdery white to coppery bark and narrow leaves that smell strongly of lemon when crushed (the source of citronellal oil). Very popular in parks, avenues and large gardens in Australia and overseas, and planted for timber and honey in Africa and Asia. It has spread from plantings and become a serious weed in Kings Park in Perth and has naturalised around Sydney and in Victoria.","care":"Rapid once established; weed a 1 m strip around young trees for two years and water in the first dry season. Prune early to a single leader. Termites attack young trees; it resists Gonipterus beetle. Keep away from buildings because of size, shed bark and branch drop.","benefits":["shade","fast_canopy","pollinators","drought_tolerant","birds"],"uses":["parks","street_tree","timber","yard_shade"],"cautions":["heavy_litter","weak_wood","invasive_elsewhere"],"image_url":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Corymbia_citriodora.jpg","image_credit":"Wikimedia Commons, file Corymbia_citriodora.jpg (see file page for author and licence)","sources":["https://apps.lucidcentral.org/euclid/text/entities/corymbia_citriodora.htm","https://apps.worldagroforestry.org/treedb2/speciesprofile.php?Spid=762","https://www.gbif.org/species/5418431","https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=368798"],"data_note":null,"updated_at":"2026-11-08T01:00:46.205Z","page_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/corymbia-citriodora","markdown_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/corymbia-citriodora.md","regions":[{"country":"AU","region":"NSW","locality":null,"status":"native","note":"Natural range north of Coffs Harbour; naturalised from plantings in suburban Sydney","source_url":"https://apps.lucidcentral.org/euclid/text/entities/corymbia_citriodora.htm"},{"country":"AU","region":"QLD","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://apps.lucidcentral.org/euclid/text/entities/corymbia_citriodora.htm"},{"country":"BR","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"adapted","note":"Planted; exotic per ICRAF","source_url":"https://apps.worldagroforestry.org/treedb2/speciesprofile.php?Spid=762"},{"country":"IN","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"adapted","note":"Planted; exotic per ICRAF","source_url":"https://apps.worldagroforestry.org/treedb2/speciesprofile.php?Spid=762"},{"country":"KE","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"adapted","note":"Planted; exotic per ICRAF","source_url":"https://apps.worldagroforestry.org/treedb2/speciesprofile.php?Spid=762"},{"country":"AU","region":"VIC","locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Naturalised near Puckapunyal from plantings","source_url":"https://apps.lucidcentral.org/euclid/text/entities/corymbia_citriodora.htm"},{"country":"AU","region":"WA","locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Naturalised in the Darling Range near Mundaring and a serious weed in Kings Park, Perth","source_url":"https://apps.lucidcentral.org/euclid/text/entities/corymbia_citriodora.htm"}],"license":"CC-BY-4.0"}