It has rough, fibrous bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped adult leaves, Flower buds arranged in groups of seven, white flowers and conical, bell-shaped or hemispherical fruit.Eucalyptus cephalocarpa grows to a height of 15–24 m (49–79 ft) and forms a lignotuber.

The leaves on young plants and on coppice regrowth are arranged in opposite pairs, usually bluish green and glaucous, egg-shaped to almost round, 25–85 mm (0.98–3.35 in) long, 17–65 mm (0.67–2.56 in) wide and sessile.

[3][4][5][6][7] Eucalyptus cephalocarpa was first formally described in 1934 by William Blakely who published the description in his book A Key to the Eucalypts.

[3] Mealy stringybark occurs mainly in Victoria but is also in found in the Nadgee Nature Reserve in the far south-east of New South Wales.

It is common around Melbourne, from the eastern suburbs to the Dandenongs and south to the Mornington Peninsula.