Adenanthos sericeus

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Adenanthos sericeus
Adenanthossericeus.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Genus: Adenanthos
Section: Adenanthos sect. Adenanthos
Species:
A. sericeus
Binomial name
Adenanthos sericeus
Subspecies

A. sericeus subsp. sericeus
A. sericeus subsp. sphalma

Contents

Adenanthos sericeus, commonly known as woolly bush, is a shrub native to the south coast of Western Australia. It has bright red but small and obscure flowers, and very soft, deeply divided, hairy leaves.

Description

Adenanthos sericeus sprig with flower.jpg
Flowers occur nested within the foliage at the end of a branch.
Adenanthos sericeus leaf.JPG
A single leaf, showing the tri-segmentation into laciniae
Adenanthos sericeus flower.JPG
Flowers, before (left) and after (right) anthesis

Adenanthos sericeus mostly grows as an upright, spreading shrub but occasionally takes the habit of a small tree up to 5 m (16 ft) tall. It has erect branches that are covered in short hairs when young, but these are lost with age. Leaves may be up to 40 mm (1.6 in) long, and repeatedly divide by threes into from 5 to 50 narrow laciniae, circular in cross-section, with a diameter of less than 0.5 mm (0.02 in). [1] [2]

Flowers are red, and occur alone or in small groups, hidden within the foliage at the end of branches. As with most other Proteaceae, each flower is composed of a tubular perianth of four united tepals, ending in a structure called a limb; and a single pistil, the stigma of which is initially trapped inside the limb, but is released at anthesis. In A. sericeus, the perianth is bright red, about 28 mm (1.1 in) long, hairy on the outside but smooth and hairless inside. The style is about 40 mm (1.6 in) long; being much longer than the perianth, it is very sharply bent for as long as the stigma remains trapped within the limb, and then springs erect. The fruit is an oval-shaped achene about 5 mm (0.2 in) long. [1] [2]

Taxonomy

Discovery and naming

This species was first described by Jacques Labillardière in his 1805 Novae Hollandiae Plantarum Specimen , under the name Adenanthos sericea. No explicit etymology for the specific name was given, but it is accepted that it is from the Latin sericeus ("silky"), in reference to the very soft foliage. [1] [3]

Labillardière did not acknowledge any collector, and so it was long thought that Labillardière himself has collected the first botanical specimens. This was not obviously problematic, as A. sericeus does occur at Esperance Bay, where Labillardière collected in December 1792. However, several Australian plant species described by Labillardière do not occur in any locations that he visited, suggesting that some of his specimens were obtained from some other collector whom he failed to credit. This prompted a re-evaluation of the type material by Ernest Charles Nelson, who found several items of evidence suggesting that Labillardière could not have collected the specimens that he apparently used to describe the species:

Nelson concluded that Labillardière could not have collected this species, instead attributing collection to Jean Baptiste Leschenault de la Tour, who visited King George Sound in 1803 as a member of Nicolas Baudin's voyage of exploration. [1] [4] This view has been accepted by some scholars [5] though others treat it more cautiously. [6]

Infrageneric placement

In 1870, George Bentham published the first infrageneric arrangement of Adenanthos in Volume 5 of his landmark Flora Australiensis . Bentham divided the genus into two sections, placing A. sericea in A. sect. Stenolaema because its perianth tube is straight and not swollen above the middle. [7] This arrangement still stands today, though A. sect. Stenolaema is now renamed to the autonym A. sect. Adenanthos. Bentham also published a variety, A. sericea var. brevifolia (now A. macropodianus ) based on specimens collected from Kangaroo Island in South Australia.

This broad view of A. sericea continued into the 20th century, with several other species included in it, including A. oreophila and A. cygnorum . The current, narrower circumscription originated with Nelson's 1970 investigation of Adenanthos. Nelson was interested in the problem of why there are so many plant species with disjunct distribution patterns in southern Australia. One such species was A. sericea, the Kangaroo Island form of which occurred about 2500 km (1600 mi) east of the nearest population of the Western Australian variety. This led Nelson to undertake a full taxonomic revision of Adenanthos, in the course of which he concluded that the Kangaroo Island form of A. sericea warranted species rank, primarily because leaves are much smaller and have fewer laciniae than the Western Australian A. sericea. In 1978 he published A. macropodiana and synonymized A. sericea var. brevifolia with it. He also published A. oreophila and clarified confusion between A. sericea and A. cygnorum. Finally, Nelson refined Bentham's arrangement by dividing A. sect. Adenanthos into two subsections, with A. sericea placed into A. subsect. Adenanthos for reasons including the length of its perianth. [1] However Nelson discarded his own subsections in his 1995 treatment of Adenanthos for the Flora of Australia series of monographs. By this time, the ICBN had issued a ruling that all genera ending in -anthos must be treated as having masculine gender; thus the specific epithet became sericeus. [2]

The placement of A. sericeus in Nelson's arrangement of Adenanthos may be summarised as follows: [2]

Adenanthos
A. sect. Eurylaema (4 species)
A. sect. Adenanthos
A. drummondii
A. dobagii
A. apiculatus
A. linearis
A. pungens (2 subspecies)
A. gracilipes
A. venosus
A. dobsonii
A. glabrescens (2 subspecies)
A. ellipticus
A. cuneatus
A. stictus
A. ileticos
A. forrestii
A. eyrei
A. cacomorphus
A. flavidiflorus
A. argyreus
A. macropodianus
A. terminalis
A. sericeus
A. sericeus subsp. sericeus
A. sericeus subsp. sphalma
A. × cunninghamii
A. oreophilus
A. cygnorum (2 subspecies)
A. meisneri
A. velutinus
A. filifolius
A. labillardierei
A. acanthophyllus

Subspecies and hybrids

Two subspecies are recognised: [2]

Adenanthos × cunninghamii is considered a hybrid between A. sericeus subsp. sericeus and A. cuneatus . It occurs in Torndirrup National Park and sometimes at Two Peoples Bay, and back-crosses with A. cuneatus have also been found in the vicinity of King George Sound. It can be distinguished from A. sericeus by its duller flowers, and by its foliage, which has very thick laciniae and, like, A. cuneatus, red new growth. [2]

Common names

Common names for A. sericeus include Woollybush —a name applied to all Adenanthos species with deeply divided foliage—and various qualifications of this, including Coastal Woollybush, Tall Woollybush, and Albany Woollybush. However the last of these also refers to A. × cunninghamii, and Nelson has referred to it as "[a] name... so confused it is now almost useless." [8] In the cut flower industry, which values its silvery foliage, the common names Smoke Bush and Australian Smoke Bush have also been used. [8] [9] [10]

In Australian nurseries, it is sold under the name Silver Streak as a popular hedge plant for domestic gardens and landscaping. [11]

Distribution and habitat

Adenanthos sericeus has a disjunct distribution spanning about 500 km (300 mi) of the south coast of Western Australia. A. sericeus subsp. sericeus occurs mostly around King George Sound, extending west as far as Torbay Inlet and east almost to Cape Riche; it sometimes occurs very close to the sea. There is then a gap of over 300 km (200 mi) to the populations of A. sericeus subsp. sphalma at Cape Le Grand. Another group of A. sericeus subsp. sphalma occurs 100 km (60 mi) further east at Cape Arid. [1] [2]

Both subspecies are calcifuge, occurring only in siliceous sands derived from weathered granite. Thus most populations are associated with granite monadnocks. Though its range is restricted, it is locally common and often dominant. A. sericeus subsp. sphalma is often found in association with Nuytsia floribunda , Kunzea baxteri , and Xanthorrhoea species. [4]

Ecology

Both subspecies flower throughout the year, though A. sericeus subsp. sphalma flowers most between August and December. [2] [4]

It is susceptible to Phytophthora cinnamomi dieback. [12]

Cultivation

Foliage with flowers Albany woollybush gnangarra 01.JPG
Foliage with flowers

Though its flowers are inconspicuous, A. sericeus is considered an attractive garden plant for the colour and texture of its dense foliage. Its high tolerance of salt-laden winds makes it an excellent screen plant in coastal areas. [3] [13] In the Albany area, branches or entire potted plants are used as Christmas trees, since young plants are shaped like small pine trees but have a silky feel. [1] One study of application of controlled-release fertiliser to A. sericeus in pots found it benefited from increasing levels of fertiliser, whereas other species plateaued at lower levels. [14] Propagation is by cuttings. These strike readily, but care must be taken not to mist the foliage too much, or it will rot. It requires very good drainage, and performs poorly in humid areas. [3] Lacking a lignotuber, it tolerates only light pruning. [13]

Several cultivars have become available, including two developed and propagated in Israel. [15]

The silvery foliage is used commercially in the cut flower industry. It has an unusually long vase life: tests have yielded a vase life of 30 days, regardless of treatment or time of year. [9] [10]

Related Research Articles

<i>Adenanthos</i> Genus of Australian native shrubs in the flowering plant family Proteaceae

Adenanthos is a genus of Australian native shrubs in the flowering plant family Proteaceae. Variable in habit and leaf shape, it is the only genus in the family where solitary flowers are the norm. It was discovered in 1791, and formally published by Jacques Labillardière in 1805. The type species is Adenanthos cuneatus, and 33 species are recognised. The genus is placed in subfamily Proteoideae, and is held to be most closely related to several South African genera.

<i>Adenanthos obovatus</i> A shrub of the plant family Proteaceae endemic to Southwest Australia

Adenanthos obovatus, commonly known as basket flower, or, jugflower, is a shrub of the plant family Proteaceae endemic to Southwest Australia. Described by French naturalist Jacques Labillardière in 1805, it had first been collected by Archibald Menzies in 1791. Within the genus Adenanthos, it lies in the section Eurylaema and is most closely related to A. barbiger. A. obovatus has hybridized with A. detmoldii to produce the hybrid A. × pamela. Several common names allude to the prominent red flowers of the species. It grows as a many-stemmed spreading bush up to 1 m (3.3 ft) high, and about 1.5 m (4.9 ft) across, with fine bright green foliage. Made up of single red flowers, the inflorescences appear from April to December, and peak in spring.

Adenanthos terminalis, commonly known as gland flower, yellow gland flower or adenanthos, is a one metre tall shrub in the family Proteaceae. It is found in south eastern regions of Australia, in the states of South Australia and Victoria, and is the most widespread of the two Adenanthos species occurring outside of Western Australia.

Nelsons taxonomic arrangement of <i>Adenanthos</i> First modern arrangement of the plant genus

Ernest Charles Nelson's taxonomic arrangement of Adenanthos was the first modern-day arrangement of that plant genus. First published in his 1978 Brunonia article "A taxonomic revision of the genus Adenanthos (Proteaceae)", it superseded the arrangement of George Bentham, which had stood for over a hundred years. It was updated by Nelson in his 1995 treatment for the Flora of Australia series of monographs.

<i>Adenanthos cuneatus</i> Shrub of the family Proteaceae native to the south coast of Western Australia.

Adenanthos cuneatus, also known as coastal jugflower, flame bush, bridle bush and sweat bush, is a shrub of the family Proteaceae, native to the south coast of Western Australia. The French naturalist Jacques Labillardière originally described it in 1805. Within the genus Adenanthos, it lies in the section Adenanthos and is most closely related to A. stictus. A. cuneatus has hybridized with four other species of Adenanthos. Growing to 2 m high and wide, it is erect to prostrate in habit, with wedge-shaped lobed leaves covered in fine silvery hair. The single red flowers are insignificant, and appear all year, though especially in late spring. The reddish new growth occurs over the summer.

<i>Adenanthos macropodianus</i> Species of shrub in the family Proteaceae endemic to Kangaroo Island in South Australia

Adenanthos macropodianus, commonly known as gland flower, or Kangaroo Island gland flower, is a species of shrub in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to Kangaroo Island in South Australia. First published as a variety of A. sericeus in 1870, it was promoted to species rank in 1978.

Adenanthos cacomorphus is a small shrub in the family Proteaceae. It is found in southwest Western Australia.

<i>Adenanthos detmoldii</i> Species of shrub in the family Proteaceae endemic to the south-west of Western Australia.

Adenanthos detmoldii, commonly known as Scott River jugflower or yellow jugflower, is a species of shrub in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia.

Adenanthos ileticos is a species of shrub in the family Proteaceae. It has roughly triangular, lobed leaves, and pale pink-red and cream, inconspicuous flowers. A rare species, it is known only from a single location in the south-west of Western Australia. It was discovered in 1968, and immediately brought into cultivation, but it would not be formally published and named until a decade later.

<i>Adenanthos barbiger</i> Species of shrub in the family Proteaceae endemic to the south-west of Western Australia

Adenanthos barbiger, the hairy jugflower or hairy glandflower, is a species of shrub in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It usually grows to 1 metre high, and has bright red flowers that appear mostly between August and December. The species was first formally described in 1839 by English botanist John Lindley in A sketch of the vegetation of the Swan River colony.

<i>Adenanthos <span style="font-style:normal;">×</span> cunninghamii</i> Species of hybrid shrub in the family Proteaceae endemic to the south-west of Western Australia

Adenanthos × cunninghamii, commonly known as woollybush, Albany woollybush or prostrate woollybush, is a hybrid shrub in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia.

Adenanthos dobagii, commonly known as Fitzgerald woollybush, is a shrub in the family Proteaceae. It grows to a mere 50 cm high, with crowded small silvery leaves and insignificant pink or cream flowers. It occurs only in southwestern Australia, where it is found in Fitzgerald River National Park on the south coast.

<i>Adenanthos <span style="font-style:normal;">sect.</span> Eurylaema</i> Taxonomic section of the flowering plant genus Adenanthos (Proteaceae)

Adenanthos sect. Eurylaema is a taxonomic section of the flowering plant genus Adenanthos (Proteaceae). It comprises four species, all of which are endemic to southwest Western Australia.

Adenanthos eyrei is a species of shrub in the family Proteaceae. Restricted to a single cliff-top dune system on the remote south coast of Western Australia, it is listed as rare and endangered. It was discovered by E. Charles Nelson in 1973, and formally described and named in 1978.

George Bentham's taxonomic arrangement of Adenanthos was the first comprehensive taxonomic arrangement of that plant genus. It was published in 1870 in his landmark flora of Australia, Flora Australiensis. It would stand for over a hundred years before being superseded by the 1978 arrangement of Ernest Charles Nelson.

<i>Adenanthos <span style="font-style:normal;">sect.</span> Adenanthos</i> Taxonomic section of plants in the genus Proteaceae

Adenanthos sect. Adenanthos is a taxonomic section of the flowering plant genus Adenanthos (Proteaceae). It comprises 29 species. The centre of diversity is southwest Western Australia, with two species extending into South Australia and western Victoria.

<i>Adenanthos glabrescens</i> Species of shrub endemic to southwest Western Australia

Adenanthos glabrescens is a species of small shrub endemic to the Ravensthorpe area in southwest Western Australia. First published in 1978, there are two subspecies.

Adenanthos labillardierei is a species of erect shrub endemic to the slopes of the Barren Ranges in the Fitzgerald River National Park in southwest Western Australia.

<i>Adenanthos oreophilus</i> Species of shrub endemic to southwest Western Australia

Adenanthos oreophilus, commonly known as woollybush, is a species of tall shrub endemic to southwest Western Australia. It is closely related to the better known A. sericeus, and was only classified as a species distinct from the latter in 1978 by Irish botanist E. Charles Nelson.

<i>Adenanthos sericeus <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> sericeus</i> Subspecies of flowering plant

Adenanthos sericeus subsp. sericeus, commonly known as coastal woollybush, is a shrub native to the south coast of Western Australia. It has bright red but small and obscure flowers, and very soft, deeply divided, hairy leaves. It is the western subspecies of Adenanthos sericeus, occurring mostly in the vicinity of King George Sound.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Nelson, Ernest Charles (1978). "A taxonomic revision of the genus Adenanthos Proteaceae". Brunonia. 1 (3): 303–406. doi:10.1071/BRU9780303.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Nelson, Ernest Charles (1995). "Adenanthos". In McCarthy, Patrick (ed.). Flora of Australia . Vol. 16. Collingwood, Victoria: CSIRO Publishing / Australian Biological Resources Study. pp. 314–342. ISBN   0-643-05692-0.
  3. 1 2 3 Wrigley, John; Fagg, Murray (1991). Banksias, Waratahs and Grevilleas. Sydney: Angus & Robertson. pp. 61–62. ISBN   0-207-17277-3.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Nelson, Ernest Charles (1979). "Studies in Adenanthos Labill. (Proteaceae) IV. The typification of A. sericea Labill. and the nomenclature of its subspecies". Glasra. 3: 9–19.
  5. ↑ Diels, Ludwig (1981). "Extra-tropical Western Australia". In Carr, D. J.; Carr, S. G. M. (eds.). People and Plants in Australia. Translated by Carr, D. J. Academic Press. p. 77 note 5. ISBN   0-12-160720-8. Labillardière fails to give credit to Leschenault for this and for other specimens which he used (e.g., Adenanthos obovata).
  6. ↑ Duyker, Edward (2003). Citizen Labillardière. Carlton: Miegunyah Press. p. 232. ISBN   0-522-85160-6. [A]nother nine anomalous species cannot be explained as a result of human interference, for their distribution patterns do not coincide with any location Labillardière visited. Some of these species may have been collected by Jean-Baptiste Louis Leschenault de La Tour during Nicolas Baudin's expedition to Australia....
  7. ↑ Bentham, George (1870). "Adenanthos". Flora Australiensis . Vol. 5. London: L. Reeve & Co. pp. 350–356.
  8. 1 2 Nelson, Ernest Charles (2005). "The koala plant and related monickers" (PDF). Australian Systematic Botany Society Newsletter. 125: 2–3. Retrieved 2010-04-03.
  9. 1 2 Parvin, Philip E. (1991). "Potential cut flower, cut foliage production of Australian and South African flora in Florida". Proceedings of the Florida State Horticultural Society. 104: 296–298.
  10. 1 2 Criley, R. A.; Parvin, Philip E. (1993). "New cut foliages from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa". Acta Horticulturae. 337 (337): 95–98. doi:10.17660/ActaHortic.1993.337.12 . Retrieved 2010-04-03.
  11. ↑ Specialty Trees - Adenanthos sericeus ' Silver Streak'
  12. ↑ "Part 2, Appendix 4: The responses of native Australian plant species to Phytophthora cinnamomi" (PDF). Management of Phytophthora cinnamomi for Biodiversity Conservation in Australia. Department of the Environment and Heritage, Australian Government. 2006. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
  13. 1 2 George, Alex (1984). An introduction to the Proteaceae of Western Australia. Kenthurst: Kangaroo Press. p. 5. ISBN   0-86417-005-X.
  14. ↑ Parks SE, Haigh AM, Harris AM (2007). "Responses of six species of Proteaceae, in containers, to controlled-release fertilizer". Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis. 38 (15–16): 2227–2237. doi:10.1080/00103620701549199. S2CID   83569652.
  15. ↑ Nelson, Ernest Charles (2006). "Adenanthos Labill. - A Plantsman's Retrospect and Prospect". Australian Plants. 23 (186): 199–214.
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