Beilschmiedia collina, commonly known as blush walnut, is a species of plant in the family Lauraceae, first described in 1989. It is native to northeast and central east Queensland, Australia.
Description This is a tree that may reach in height and diameter at breast height, with a nondescript bark and usually without buttresses. The leaves are lanceolate to narrowly obovate, dull chalky-green underneath, and average about long and wide. They are arranged alternately on the twigs and attached to them with petioles averaging about long. There are between six and ten pairs of lateral veins on either side of the midrib.
Inflorescences emerge from the and carry many very small pale green flowers with tepals that are about long and wide. Flowers of the genus Beilschmiedia typically are and have six tepals in two whorls of three, nine stamens, and 2- or 4-locular anthers. The ovary is sessile and the stigma is insignificant.
The fruit is, in botanical terms, a berry, black or dark purple in colour, ellipsoid, and containing a single seed. It may reach long and diameter, the seed about long and diameter.
Distribution and habitat Beilschmiedia collina is endemic to Queensland, Australia, occurring along the east coast, mostly on sub-coastal ranges from about Rossville to Eungella National Park near Mackay. It grows in rainforest on granitic soils at altitudes from to about .
Taxonomy This species was first described in 1989 by Bernard Hyland, based on the examination of over 80 collected specimens. He published the name is a far-reaching review of Lauraceae in Australia.
Etymology The species epithet collina is a reference to the tree's preference for mountain forest. It is derived from the Latin word collis, meaning 'hill'.
Conservation status This species has been assessed to be of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and by the Queensland Government under its Nature Conservation Act.
Uses The fruit is eaten by a number of species of fruit doves.
The tree grows large enough to produce useful-sized logs, but the timber is not of high quality. What is milled is marketed as Blush Walnut, and it has a specific gravity of 0.9.
References
External links
Map of herbarium collections of this species at the Australasian Virtual Herbarium Observations of this species on iNaturalist Images of this species on Flickriver.com