Cryptocarya laevigata

Location & distribution maps

Plant  information

Common name:                Clossy Laurel 

Also, red-fruited laurel

Conservation status:  ...

Etymology:   

Flowers:                  

• Small, cream, scented flowers form on panicles from October to December

Fruit:                         

• he fruit is an orange or red drupe, 15 mm in diameter

• The single woody seed is pointed and prominently ribbed, like many other Australian Cryptocarya seeds

• The fruit is ripe from to January to May

Leaves:         

• Leaves alternate, elliptical in shape, smooth-edged with a long blunt tip

• They are glossy above and below

• The leaf features a mid rib and two other lateral veins, giving a three veined appearance

• Other leaf veins indistinct

Stem & branches: 

• Occasionally reaching 6 m in height 

• A trunk diameter of 8 cm

• The bark is brown and smooth apart from vertical raised bumps

Roots:         

Habit:        

•  Shrub or small tree

Habitat:   

• It grows in tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests

• It grows in the rainforest understorey

• It is often seen in association with the White Booyong

Distribution:                  

•  Ranges across much of Malesia – Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Java, Sulawesi, and the Philippines – to New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, Solomon Islands, and eastern Australia

• In Australia, it rrom the Richmond River, NSW to Cairns in tropical Queensland

Additional notes:   

• Cultivation

  • The glossy leaves, small size and attractive red fruit make it suitable as an ornamental tree

  • Like most Australian Cryptocarya fruit, removal of the slimy red aril is advised to assist seed germination

  • Roots and shoots usually appear within three to twelve months

Sources of information:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptocarya_laevigata (Feb 2004)