Casuarina equisetifolia

In Australia, C. equisetifolia subsp. equisetifolia is mainly a small tree, 8-16 m tall, in contrast to populations in South-East Asia where the tree may attain heights of 35 m with diameters to 50 cm. The subsp. incana is typically a small tree and may be reduced to only a large shrub 6-10 m tall on poor sites. Form in wild populations is very variable, varying from crooked, low branching trees on exposed sea shores, to straight-stemmed forest trees in more sheltered situations. Crowns are finely branched. The bark is light grey-brown, smooth on small trunks, becoming rough and thick furrowed on older trees. Encircling bands of lenticels are prominent on young bark. The inner bark is reddish and astringent (Doran and Turnbull, 1997). Twigs are drooping, needle-like, furrowed, 1-2.5 mm in diameter and 23-38 cm long and angular to rounded in cross-section, glabrous or pubescent. The minute teeth-like reduced leaves are in whorls of 7-8 per node. Male flowers occur on simple terminal, elongated spikes 7-40 mm long and are arranged in whorls with 7-11.5 whorls per cm of spike. Female flowers are borne on lateral woody branches. The 'cones' are globose to short- to long- cylindrical, 10-35 mm long, 9-15 mm diameter, with acute bracteoles more or less protruding from the surface of the cone. Fruitlets bear a single, dull brown samara 6-8 mm long. In subsp. incana the young shoots and 'cones' are frequently covered in a fine white pubescence.