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Phyllanthus ferdinandi, with common names that include cheese tree (see below), is a species of small to medium–sized trees, constituting part of the plant family Phyllanthaceae. They grow naturally across eastern Australia, from south–eastern New South Wales northwards to northern and inland Queensland, in rainforests and humid eucalypt forests. Frugivorous birds such as pigeons, figbirds and parrots consume its fruit.
It is an easily grown pioneer species useful in bush regeneration and natural landscaping of areas to which it is native in eastern Australia. The species may colonise disturbed areas, and is a fast-growing plant. Plants require ample water but adapt to a wide range of soils and sun or shade. It can be grown as an indoor plant in a bright position.
Two cases of dogs suffering from acute liver failure were published in 2019. Both dogs had been chewing on the roots of this species, however it is unclear whether the condition was caused by the tree roots themselves, a fungus that lives on the tree roots, or some other source.
The cheese tree grows in both clay and sandy soils, and is found in rainforest and wetter areas in sclerophyll forest, where it may be associated with such species as bangalay (Eucalyptus botryoides), woollybutt (E. longifolia), forest red gum (E. tereticornis) thin-leaved stringybark (E. eugenioides) and swamp she-oak (Casuarina glauca). The hairy cheese tree grows with magenta lilly pilly (Syzygium paniculatum), broad-leaved paperbark (Melaleuca quinquenervia), and Rhodomyrtus species.
The dried fruits, which resemble miniature pumpkins, are sold as "putka pods" for use in potpourri.
Glochidion carrickii · Buttonwood · Phyllanthus hohenackeri · Glochidion hylandii · Phyllanthus raiateaensis · Glochidion stylosum · Glochidion symingtonii · Phyllanthus temehaniensis · Glochidion zeylanicum var. tomentosum · Glochidion · Phyllanthus apodogynus · Phyllanthus bourdillonii
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Phyllanthus ferdinandi by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
