Diospyros pentamera

"Grey Plum" redirects here. This may also be used for Yellow Persimmon (D. australis), its southern relative.

Diospyros pentamera
Myrtle Ebony at Yatteyattah Nature Reserve, near Milton, New South Wales
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Ericales
Family:	Ebenaceae
Genus:	Diospyros
Species:	D. pentamera
Binomial name
Diospyros pentamera Woolls & F.Muell.

Diospyros pentamera is a common rainforest tree in the Ebony or Persimmon family (Ebenaceae) growing from near Batemans Bay (36° S) in New South Wales to the Atherton Tableland (17° S) in tropical Queensland, Australia. It is commonly known as the Myrtle Ebony, Black Myrtle, Grey Plum or Grey Persimmon.

Description

Diospyros pentamera is a small to large rainforest tree, from 6 to 40 metres in height at maturity, and 60 centimetres in width at the base. It grows in various types of rainforests, but grows best in volcanic soils in fire free areas with high rainfall.

The leaves are 5 to 9 centimetres long, not toothed. Fragrant white flowers form in spring. The mid sized edible berry matures around December to February. It's eaten by many rainforest birds including Brown Cuckoo Dove, Wompoo Fruit Dove, Rose-crowned Fruit Dove, Topknot Pigeon, Currawong, Regent Bowerbird and Australasian Figbird. Germination of fresh seed is quick, but occasionally unreliable. This tree is easily identified in the rainforest by the dark rough bark, which resembles the bark of Ironbark trees.

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  Diospyros pentamera growing by the Minnamurra River, Budderoo National Park, Australia

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  Diospyros pentamera growing by the Hacking River, Royal National Park, Australia

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  Diospyros pentamera growing by the Allyn River, Barrington Tops, Australia

References

• Floyd, A.G., Rainforest Trees of Mainland South-eastern Australia, Inkata Press 1989, ISBN 0-909605-57-2