About Cryptocarya rigida Meisn.
Cryptocarya rigida Meisn. is a shrub or small tree that typically reaches 10 meters (33 feet) in height, with a trunk diameter at breast height of around 20 centimeters (7.9 inches). Its bark is grey, thin and corky, and its stems are not buttressed. The leaves of this species are lance-shaped to elliptic, between 60 and 135 millimeters (2.4 to 5.3 inches) long and 12 to 50 millimeters (0.47 to 1.97 inches) wide. They are covered in soft hairs, and the lower surface is glaucous. Flowers are most often arranged in panicles growing from leaf axils, and the flower clusters are shorter than the leaves. The flowers themselves are creamy-green and unscented. The perianth tube is 1.4–1.6 mm long and 1.7–1.8 mm wide. The tepals measure 1.5–2.0 mm long and 0.9–1.5 mm wide. Outer anthers are around 0.8 mm long and 0.6–0.7 mm wide, while inner anthers are 0.8–0.9 mm long and 0.5–0.6 mm wide. Flowering takes place from October to March. The fruit is an elliptic black drupe, 17–25 mm long and 11–17.5 mm wide, containing creamy cotyledons. This species of Cryptocarya grows in rainforest, particularly along rainforest edges, at altitudes between 150 and 900 meters (490 to 2950 feet). Its range extends from near Springbrook in southern Queensland to Dungog and Ourimbah in New South Wales. The species is considered extinct in the Illawarra region at 34° S; it was reportedly sighted there in 1818 by Allan Cunningham. For horticultural use, like most Australian Cryptocarya species, removing the fleshy aril from the seed is recommended to improve germination. Germination is slow but reliable for C. rigida.
