Thorny Yellowwood
| Zanthoxylum brachyacanthum | |
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| Thorny yellowwood at Tooloom National Park, Australia | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Sapindales |
| Family: | Rutaceae |
| Genus: | Zanthoxylum |
| Species: | Z. brachyacanthum |
| Binomial name | |
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Zanthoxylum brachyacanthum F. Muell. |
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| Synonyms | |
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Zanthoxylum brachyacanthum, known as thorny yellowwood or satinwood, is an Australian rainforest tree. The natural range is from the Clarence River (29° S) in New South Wales to tropical Queensland in the Eungella National Park and the Wet Tropics region.
This tree is in the family Rutaceae, which is sometimes known as the "citrus family" because this family also contains all of the species (such as the orange, lemon, etc.) in the genus Citrus.
This tree grows on a variety of subtropical, tropical and drier rainforests, often on volcanic soils. Young trees are easily identified in the rainforest by the thorny trunk and the dark green glossy leaves.
The leaves of Zanthoxylum brachyacanthum serve as a food plant for butterfly larvae including those of the orchard swallowtail butterfly and the fuscus swallowtail.
This is a small tree, up to 15 metres tall and 35 cm around the trunk. The bark is grey, wrinkled and features sharp pointed lenticels on young trees. Older trees appear more smooth barked. Trees are mostly not buttressed or flanged at the base.
The leaves are alternate and pinnate, with five to sixteen shiny leaflets. Leaflets are alternate, 4 to 9 cm long, egg shaped or oblong, usually toothed and with evident oil glands. The branchlets have prickles and are green or blue/green. The leaf scars are noticeable.
The flowers appear on panicles from October to November. They are pink or red, with a yellowish centre. The flowers are very attractive to insects because of their nectar.
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Wikipedia