Eremophila maculata

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Spotted emu bush
Eremophila mac.jpg
Eremophila maculata subsp. maculata leaves and flowers
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Genus: Eremophila
Species:
E. maculata
Binomial name
Eremophila maculata

Eremophila maculata, also known as spotted emu bush [2] or spotted fuchsia-bush, [3] is a plant in the figwort family Scrophulariaceae, and is endemic to Australia. It is the most widespread of its genus in nature and probably the most frequently cultivated Eremophila. It is a spreading, often densely branched shrub with variable leaf shape and flower colour, but the other features of the flowers such as the size and shape of the parts are consistent. The inside of the flower is often, but not always, spotted.

Contents

Description

Eremophila maculata is a low spreading shrub, which usually grows to less than 2.5 metres (8 ft) tall. Its leaves range in size from 3.8 millimetres (0.1 in) to 45 millimetres (2 in) long and 0.5–18 millimetres (0.02–0.7 in) wide, and range from almost thread-like to almost circular but are nearly always glabrous and always lack teeth or serrations on the edges. [2] [3] [4]

The flower colour often varies even within a single population and may be pink, mauve, red, orange or yellow, often spotted on the inside. Flowers occur singly in the leaf axils and have a glabrous, S-shaped stalk, 10–25 millimetres (0.4–1 in) long. There are 5 sepals which are egg-shaped but end in a sudden point and are green or purplish-green. The 5 petals are joined for most of their length in a tube 25–35 millimetres (0.98–1.4 in) long, but the lobes on the sides and bottom of the flower are often turned or rolled back. The outside of the petals is glabrous but the inside surface of the tube is hairy and the lobes have a few spider-web like hairs. There are 4 stamens which extend beyond the petals. Flowers may appear in almost any month but are most prolific in winter and spring. The fruits which follow the flowers are dry, almost spherical and have an obvious beak. [2] [3] [4]

E. maculata subsp. brevifolia leaves and flowers Eremophila maculata brevifolia (leaves and flowers).jpg
E. maculata subsp. brevifolia leaves and flowers
E. maculata subsp. brevifolia growing near Bromus Dam south of Norseman Eremophila maculata brevifolia (habit).jpg
E. maculata subsp. brevifolia growing near Bromus Dam south of Norseman

Taxonomy and naming

Eremophila maculata was given its present name in 1859 by Ferdinand von Mueller in "Report on the Plants Collected During Mr. Babbage's Expedition into the North West Interior of South Australia in 1858". [5] It was first formally described in 1822 by John Bellenden Ker Gawler as Stenochilus maculatus Ker Gawl. [6] [7]

The specific epithet maculata means "spotted", referring to the prominently spotted flowers. [4] [8]

Three subspecies have been recognised by the Australian Plant Census:

The epithet brevifolia refers to the short leaves, and filifolia to the long, narrow leaves. [4] [8]

Distribution

Eremophila maculata occurs in Western Australia, South Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. It often grows on river flats and areas subject to periodic flooding. [4]

Ecology

Joseph Maiden's 1889 book 'The Useful Native Plants of Australia’ records that "This is considered poisonous by some, and by others a good fodder bush. It does not appear to be dangerous to stock accustomed to eat it, but to others, travelling stock particularly, Mr. Hutchinson of Warrego (Queensland) considers it to be deadly. The effects of this plant are always worse after rain. It appears to be most dangerous when in fruit. (Bailey and Gordon)." [12]

Use in horticulture

Eremophila maculata is well known in horticulture, and hybrid forms and cultivars such as 'Carmine Star' and 'Aurea' have been developed. The most common form in gardens is the cherry-coloured form of E. maculata subsp. brevifolia but other colours are becoming popular. It is easily propagated with firm tip cuttings taken during warmer months striking the most easily. In nature, spotted emu bush often grows in heavy clay soil and in the garden can be grown in similar soil or even in deep sand. A sunny position sheltered from strong wind is ideal but the shrub is very drought and frost hardy and can be grown in coastal areas which are sometimes subject to high humidity. [2] [13] [14] It is recommended for gardens in the hotter, drier areas of the United States such as Arizona and New Mexico. [15]

Related Research Articles

<i>Eremophila divaricata</i> Species of plant

Eremophila divaricata, also known as spreading emu bush, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a shrub with stiff, spreading, tangled branches which are often spiny on their ends, erect leaves and mauve to lilac-coloured flowers.

<i>Eremophila glabra</i> Species of plant

Eremophila glabra, commonly known as tar bush, is a plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is sometimes a low, ground-hugging and sometimes an erect shrub. The leaves are variable in size and shape and there is a range of flower colours. In spite of its scientific name, not all forms of the plant are glabrous but most have many small, raised glands on the stems, flowers and leaves.

<i>Eremophila oldfieldii</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila oldfieldii, commonly known as pixie bush, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a shrub or small tree with rough bark, broad, flat or narrow fleshy leaves and red, orange or yellow flowers.

<i>Eremophila oppositifolia</i> Species of plant

Eremophila oppositifolia, commonly known as weeooka, twin-leaf emu bush and mountain sandalwood, is a plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae, and is endemic to Australia. It is a shrub or small tree with its leaves arranged in opposite pairs and has cream to red or sometimes maroon coloured flowers. It occurs in all mainland states, but not the Northern Territory.

<i>Eremophila latrobei</i> Species of plant

Eremophila latrobei, commonly known as crimson turkey bush, native fuchsia, Latrobe's emu bush, grey fuchsia bush, warty fuchsia bush and Georgina poison bush is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is an erect, highly branched shrub with usually linear leaves and red to purple-red flowers and which occurs in all mainland states, including the Northern Territory but excluding Victoria.

<i>Eremophila abietina</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila abietina, also known as spotted poverty bush, is a plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to a few arid areas of Western Australia. It is a stiff, upright, compact and very sticky shrub with distinctive, dark bluish-green leaves and pale coloured flowers spotted purple.

<i>Eremophila bowmanii</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila bowmanii, also known as silver turkeybush, Bowman's poverty bush and flannel bush, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to New South Wales and Queensland in Australia. It is a low to medium, spreading shrub with silvery-grey, hairy foliage and blue to lilac flowers, and sometimes grows in dense thickets with mulga.

<i>Eremophila decipiens</i> Species of plant

Eremophila decipiens, commonly known as slender fuchsia bush or narrow-leaved fuchsia bush is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to an area extending from the south-west of Western Australia to southern parts of South Australia. It is low, sprawling shrub with lance-shaped leaves and red, orange or yellow flowers on a long, S-shaped stalk.

<i>Eremophila fraseri</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila fraseri, commonly known as burra or jilarnu, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a shrub or small tree with all above-ground parts of the plant, apart from the petals, sticky and shiny due to the presence of a large amount of resin. The petals are coloured white, cream, pink and brown.

<i>Eremophila deserti</i> Species of plant

Eremophila deserti is a shrub which is endemic to Australia. Common names for this species include turkey bush, dogwood, poison bushEllangowan poison bush, pencil bush and carrot bush. It is common and widespread in all mainland states, although not the Northern Territory. Some forms are poisonous to stock.

<i>Eremophila racemosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila racemosa, also known as showy eremophila, is a flowering plant in the figwort family Scrophulariaceae, and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with glabrous leaves, small, green sepals and flowers that have many colour variations often changing as they age.

<i>Eremophila densifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila densifolia is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is usually a low, spreading shrub with densely clustered leaves and lilac to purple flowers.

<i>Eremophila gilesii</i> Species of plant

Eremophila gilesii, commonly known Charleville turkey bush, green turkey bush, desert fuchsia and Giles emu bush is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is usually a low, spreading shrub with pinkish-lilac to purple flowers and is widespread in the Northern Territory and all mainland states except Victoria. It is considered a difficult agricultural weed in some parts of Queensland but is often used as a bush medicine by Aboriginal people.

<i>Eremophila goodwinii</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila goodwinii, commonly known purple fuchsia bush and Goodwin's emu bush is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a small, spreading or erect shrub with most parts sticky due to the presence of resin, tapering leaves and pale lilac to mauve flowers. It occurs in New South Wales, the Northern Territory and Queensland.

<i>Eremophila paisleyi</i> Species of plant

Eremophila paisleyi is a plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a rounded, broom-shaped shrub with white or lilac-coloured flowers which occurs in Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory.

<i>Eremophila parvifolia</i> Species of plant

Eremophila parvifolia is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a shrub which has small, usually egg-shaped leaves and blackish flower buds which open to purple flowers which are white with purple spots inside. There are two subspecies, both of which are found in Western Australia and one which is also found in South Australia.

<i>Eremophila serrulata</i> Species of plant

Eremophila serrulata, commonly known as serrate-leaved eremophila, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is an erect or spreading shrub whose leaves are sticky and have small serrations, and flowers that have green, yellowish-green or yellowish-brown petals.

<i>Eremophila spectabilis</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila spectabilis, commonly known as showy poverty bush, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a dense, erect shrub with narrow, greyish leaves and blue, mauve or purple flowers.

Eremophila verrucosa is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is an erect, broom-shaped shrub with its leaves and branches covered with yellow-grey scales and lilac to purple flowers.

<i>Eremophila jucunda <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> pulcherrima</i> Subspecies of flowering plant

Eremophila jucunda subsp. pulcherrima is a plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small shrub with grey, hairy leaves and sepals and blue or mauve flowers often growing in stony places. It is similar to subspecies jucunda but is distinguished from it by its grey new growth and more northerly distribution.

References

  1. ↑ "Eremophila maculata". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Eremophila maculata". Australian Native Plants Society Australia. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 "Eremophila maculata". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Chinnock, R.J. (Bob) (2007). Eremophila and allied genera : a monograph of the plant family Myoporaceae (1st ed.). Dural, NSW: Rosenberg. pp. 563–567. ISBN   9781877058165.
  5. ↑ "Eremophila maculata". APNI. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  6. ↑ "Stenochilus maculatus". APNI. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  7. ↑ Ker Gawler, John Bellenden (1822). The Botanical Register (Volume 8). London: James Ridgway. p. 647. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  8. 1 2 Brown, Andrew; Buirchell, Bevan (2011). A field guide to the eremophilas of Western Australia (1st ed.). Hamilton Hill, W.A.: Simon Nevill Publications. pp. 175–178. ISBN   9780980348156.
  9. ↑ "Eremophila maculata subsp. brevifolia". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  10. ↑ "Eremophila maculata subsp. filifolia". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  11. ↑ "Eremophila maculata subsp. maculata". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  12. ↑ J. H. Maiden (1889). The useful native plants of Australia : Including Tasmania. Turner and Henderson, Sydney.
  13. ↑ Boschen, Norma; Goods, Maree; Wait, Russell (2008). Australia's eremophilas : changing gardens for a changing climate. Melbourne: Bloomings Books. pp. 125–130. ISBN   9781876473655.
  14. ↑ Wrigley, John W.; Fagg, Murray (1983). Australian native plants : a manual for their propagation, cultivation and use in landscaping (2nd ed.). Sydney: Collins. p. 214. ISBN   0002165759.
  15. ↑ Irish, Mary; Phillips, Judith (2014). Arizona & New Mexico getting started garden guide : grow the best flowers, shrubs, trees, vines & groundcovers. Minneapolis: Quarto Publishing. p. 135. ISBN   9781591865919.
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