Backhousia

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Backhousia
Backhousia citriodora.jpg
Backhousia citriodora foliage and flowers
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Subfamily: Myrtoideae
Tribe: Backhousieae
Genus: Backhousia
Hook. & Harv. [1] [2]
Synonyms
  • Choricarpia

Backhousia is a genus of thirteen currently known species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. [1] [2] All the currently known species are endemic to Australia in the rainforests and seasonally dry forests of Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia. [2] [3]

In 1845 in the European science publication the Botanical Magazine William Jackson Hooker and William Henry Harvey first published this genus's formal description and name, after botanist James Backhouse from England and Australia. [1] [2]

They grow to aromatic shrubs or trees from 5 to 25 m (20 to 80 ft) tall, with leaves 3–12 cm (1.2–4.7 in) long and 1–6 cm (0.4–2.4 in) wide, arranged opposite to each other.

Species

Sourced from the authoritative Australian Plant Name Index and Australian Plant Census as of June 2014. [2] For taxa including undescribed species further afield outside Australia, for example likely in New Guinea, this list lacks them—refer also to the genus Kania. [2] [3]

Formerly included here

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myrtaceae</span> Myrtle family of plants

Myrtaceae, the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All species are woody, contain essential oils, and have flower parts in multiples of four or five. The leaves are evergreen, alternate to mostly opposite, simple, and usually entire. The flowers have a base number of five petals, though in several genera, the petals are minute or absent. The stamens are usually very conspicuous, brightly coloured, and numerous.

Ironwood is a common name for many woods or plants that have a reputation for hardness, or specifically a wood density that is heavier than water, although usage of the name ironwood in English may or may not indicate a tree that yields such heavy wood.

<i>Syzygium</i> Genus of plants

Syzygium is a genus of flowering plants that belongs to the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. The genus comprises about 1200 species, and has a native range that extends from Africa and Madagascar through southern Asia east through the Pacific. Its highest levels of diversity occur from Malaysia to northeastern Australia, where many species are very poorly known and many more have not been described taxonomically. One indication of this diversity is in leaf size, ranging from as little as a half inch to as great as 4 ft 11 inches by sixteen inches in Syzygium acre of New Caledonia.

<i>Backhousia citriodora</i> Species of tree

Backhousia citriodora is a flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae, genus Backhousia. It is endemic to subtropical rainforests of central and south-eastern Queensland, Australia, with a natural distribution from Mackay to Brisbane. Other common names are sweet verbena tree, sweet verbena myrtle,, and lemon scented backhousia.

<i>Acmena</i> Genus of flowering plants

Acmena was formerly the name of a genus of shrubs and trees in the myrtle family Myrtaceae. The genus was first formally described in 1828 by Augustin Pyramus de Candolle in his Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis.

<i>Syncarpia</i> Genus of trees

Syncarpia is a small group of trees in the myrtle family (Myrtaceae) described as a genus in 1839. They are native to Queensland and New South Wales in Australia.

<i>Homoranthus</i> Genus of flowering plants

Homoranthus is a genus of about thirty species of plants in the myrtle family Myrtaceae and all are endemic to Australia. Plants in this genus share similarities with those in both Darwinia and Verticordia. They are shrubs with their leaves arranged in opposite pairs and with flowers appearing either singly or in small groups, usually in upper leaf axils. They are found in Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia. The genus was first described in 1836. None of the species is common nor are they well-known in horticulture.

<i>Syzygium anisatum</i> Species of tree

Syzygium anisatum, with common names ringwood and aniseed tree, is a rare Australian rainforest tree with an aromatic leaf that has an essential oil profile comparable to true aniseed.

<i>Backhousia myrtifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

Backhousia myrtifolia is a small rainforest tree species which grows in subtropical rainforests of Eastern Australia. First discovered and subsequently used by the indigenous communities of Australia, this plant produces oils that have a cinnamon-like aroma, and display both anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties. Therefore, it has potential applications as not only a spice in food preparation, but also in the medical field as a treatment option for microbial infection. Backhousia myrtifolia can grow up to 30 metres. The leaves are ovate or elliptic, 4–7 cm long, and the flowers star-shaped in appearance.

<i>Backhousia leptopetala</i> Species of tree

Backhousia leptopetala is a common Australian tree, growing from Stanwell Park in the northern Illawarra district to near Buderim in south eastern Queensland.

<i>Backhousia subargentea</i> Species of tree

Backhousia subargentea is a rare Australian rainforest tree, growing near Mullumbimby in north eastern New South Wales and from Boonah to Imbil in south eastern Queensland.

Lyndley Alan Craven was a botanist who became the Principal Research Scientist of the Australian National Herbarium.

<i>Melaleuca nematophylla</i> Species of flowering plant

Melaleuca nematophylla, commonly known as wiry honey-myrtle is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is one of the showiest melaleucas when in flower in early spring, is easily grown and has unusual needle-like foliage. As a result, it is relatively common in cultivation in temperate parts of Australia.

Calytrix harvestiana is a species of plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae that is endemic to Western Australia.

Calytrix merrelliana is a species of plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae that is endemic to Western Australia.

<i>Backhousia oligantha</i> Species of plant in the family Myrtaceae

Backhousia oligantha is a rare species of plant in the family Myrtaceae. Mostly found in south eastern Queensland. The small tree has an unusual growth habit, with colonies of many prostrate shoots and many stems from one genotype. At the type location, there are 100 to 200 stems in six clumps, possibly with only six unique individuals. The epithet oligantha is derived from the Greek language, meaning few flowers.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Hooker, William Jackson; Harvey, William Henry (1845). "Tab. 4133 Backhousia myrtifolia Myrtle-leaved Backhousia; Nat Ord. Myrtaceae—Icosandria Monogynia; Backhousia. Hook. et Harv" (Digitised archive copy, online, from biodiversitylibrary.org). Botanical Magazine. 71. tab: 4133 (plate and text formal genus and species description). Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Backhousia%". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS) database (listing by % wildcard matching of all taxa relevant to Australia). Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
  3. 1 2 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  4. Ford, Andrew J.; Craven, Lyndley A.; Brophy, J. J. (2005). "Backhousia enata A.J.Ford, Craven & J.Holmes (Myrtaceae), a new species from north-eastern Queensland". Austrobaileya. 7 (1). pages 121–127, fig. 1, map 1. JSTOR   41739014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Harrington, Mark G.; Jackes, Betsy R.; Barrett, M. D.; et al. (2012). "Phylogenetic revision of Backhousieae (Myrtaceae): Neogene divergence, a revised circumscription of Backhousia and two new species" (PDF). Australian Systematic Botany. 25 (6): 409–414. doi:10.1071/sb12015. S2CID   56067440.
  6. Bean, A. R. (2003). "Backhousia oligantha (Myrtaceae), a new species from Queensland". Austrobaileya. 6 (3). pages 533–536, fig. 1, map 1. JSTOR   41738996.
  7. "Mystery Tree April 2010; Update 2012 Backhousia tetraptera". The Society for Growing Australian Plants Townsville Branch Inc. 2012. Archived from the original (website) on 13 May 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
  8. Wilson, Paul G.; O'Brien, M. M.; Quinn, Chris J. (2000). "Anetholea (Myrtaceae), a new genus for Backhousia anisata: a cryptic member of the Acmena alliance". Australian Systematic Botany. 13 (3): 429–435. doi:10.1071/SB99008.
  9. Craven, Lyndley A.; Biffin, Ed (2005). "Anetholea anisata transferred to, and two new Australian taxa of, Syzygium (Myrtaceae)". Blumea. 50 (1): 157–162. doi:10.3767/000651905x623346.