Wood Species: Gum, Spotted

The black gum tree (Nyssa sylvatica) is a hardwood in the tupelo family which may grow up to 75-80 feet tall. Amazingly, these trees live beyond 400 years! The general distribution of black gums is from southwestern Maine, west to southern Ontario, New York, Michigan, Illinois and Missouri, and south to Florida.

Properties

Hardness/Janka: 2473 (92% harder than Northern red oak).

Dimensional stability: Excellent

Origin: Australia

Availability: Moderately available.

Average and maximum lifespan: 200-300

Workability

Sawing/Machining: Good.

Sanding: No known problems.

Suggested Sequence
First Cut: 50 at a 7-15 degree angle with the grain
Second Cut: 60 or 80 straight with the grain
Third Cut: 100
Hard Plate: 120
First Screen: 100

Nailing: Pre-drilling and hand-nailing may be preferred

Finishing: No known problems. Will readily accept paint, stain and
polish. Has lower tannin content than most other eucalypts, therefore
staining of paintwork, brickwork etc., as a result of water running
over unpainted timber surfaces, is less likely to occur.

Common Uses:
Spotted gum has a range of possible uses including as a sawn or round
timber in engineering works; as an unseasoned timber in general
framing and construction, joinery and fencing; fine and outdoor
furniture, parquetry and turnery. Spotted gum plantings also play a
significant role in land rehabilitation and management.


Detailed Description

Plant habit and life style: They have straight, slender trunks with smooth bark. The bark is shed
in patches, giving the species its characteristic spotted appearance. Color tones range from pink to grey-blue.

Stems: On favorable sites, these species grow to 45 m in height and 1.3 m in stem diameter, but attain only half these dimensions on poorer sites.

Buds: The bud caps have a little point and are generally clustered in groups of 3 to 7 on small leafless shoots in axils of leaves towards the ends of the branchlets. In typical gum fashion the bud cap is pushed off by the unfurling stamens.

Leaves: The leaves of Spotted Gum are slightly glossy, and are approximately 18cm long and 2.5cm across.  The juvenile leaves can grow to 23cm long and be 10cm wide.  The leaf is widest at the base and tapers to a point.

Flowers: The flowers or umbels cluster in threes on short shoots on the ends of the leaves.  The flowers are white to cream and occur in May to September.

Fruits: The fruit is produced on a stalk and is barrel shaped, about 1.4cm X 1.1cm, with swellings or warts.

Habitat: occurs mainly in the coastal areas of northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, but also in western areas of southern Queensland. It grows from the mid-north coast of NSW to the Windsor
Tableland, North Queensland.

Special Diagnostic Characters: Spotted gum dries easily and has a faint scent like citrus or oranges.
It has a high resistance to decay. A slight greasy feel to the wood is common. It can grow high quality logs on good sites and the timber is suitable for a wide range of uses, particularly sawn timber and poles. Its major limitation is its susceptibility to frost, restricting its growth to frost free sites.