Cymbonotus lawsonianus

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Bears ear
Cymbonotus lawsonianus close up.jpg
Near Goulburn
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Cymbonotus
Species:
C. lawsonianus
Binomial name
Cymbonotus lawsonianus

Cymbonotus lawsonianus, commonly known as bears ear, [2] is a species of small shrub in the family Asteraceae from southeastern Australia. It has been described as Arctotis lawsoniana. [3] It is one of three species in the small genus Cymbonotus . [4] It was named in honour of the explorer William Lawson. [5]

Cymbonotus lawsonianus is a herbaceous perennial which may reach 30 cm (12 in) high, its leaves arranged in a rosette pattern on the ground. The leaves themselves are ovate, lanceolate or elliptic, and measure anywhere from 2 to 25 cm (0.8–10 in) long, 2–9 cm (0.8-3.6 in) wide, with margins entire or toothed. [4] The yellow flowers occur from autumn to spring (March to October), and are pollinated by insects. They are followed by small black seeds in early spring (September and October). [2]

It is found from Toowoomba and the Darling Downs in south-eastern Queensland southwards throughout New South Wales, and into northern Victoria, southeastern South Australia and Tasmania. [4] It grows on both clay and sandstone soils and various loams in between, often in forest or open woodland. It can also be found in parks and gardens. [4]

Molecular studies of African genera and C. lawsonianus showed the plant to be very closely related to the genera Arctotis and Haplocarpha , suggesting they must have been dispersed across the Indian Ocean to Australia somehow. [6]

It is adaptable to the home garden and grows in a variety of soils, although does not tolerate waterlogging. It is a good rockery plant. Early settlers mixed the plant in lard and used as a wound salve. [5]

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References

  1. "Cymbonotus lawsonianus". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 Murray, Louisa. "Cymbonotus lawsonianus". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  3. "Cymbonotus lawsonianus Gaudich". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government.
  4. 1 2 3 4 A.E. Holland; V.A. Funk (2006). "A Revision of Cymbonotus (Compositae: Arctotideae, Arctotidinae)". Telopea. 11 (3): 266–75. doi: 10.7751/telopea20065728 . ISSN   0312-9764.
  5. 1 2 Elliot RW, Jones DL, Blake T (1984). Encyclopaedia of Australian Plants Suitable for Cultivation:Volume 3 - Ce-Er. Port Melbourne: Lothian Press. p. 152. ISBN   0-85091-167-2.
  6. Robert J. McKenzie4, Elizabeth M. Muller, Amy K. W. Skinner, Per Ola Karis and Nigel P. Barker, R. J.; Muller, E. M.; Skinner, A. K. W.; Karis, P. O.; Barker, N. P. (2006). "Phylogenetic relationships and generic delimitation in subtribe Arctotidinae (Asteraceae: Arctotideae) inferred by DNA sequence data from ITS and five chloroplast regions". American Journal of Botany. 93 (8): 1222–35. doi:10.3732/ajb.93.8.1222. PMID   21642186.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)