Maireana villosa

Maireana villosa
In Idalia National Park
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Amaranthaceae
Genus:	Maireana
Species:	M. villosa
Binomial name
Maireana villosa (Lindl.) Paul G.Wilson [1]
Synonyms [1]
Kochia tomentosa var. lindleyana Domin Kochia villosaLindl. Kochia villosaLindl var. villosa

Habit

Maireana villosa, commonly known as silky bluebush, ^[2] or common bluebush, ^[3] is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae and is endemic to mainland Australia. It is an open, hairy, ascending subshrub or shrub with semi-succulent linear to oblong or narrowly lance-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, mostly bisexual flowers arranged singly or in pairs, and a fruiting perianth with a more or less horizontal wing with a radial slit.

Description

Maireana villosa is an open, ascending subshrub or shrub that typically grows up to 80 cm (31 in) high and has its current season's stems hairy. The leaves are arranged alternately, semi-succulent, linear to oblong or narrowly lance-shaped with the narrower end towards the base,5–25 mm (0.20–0.98 in) long and mostly 0.8–2.5 mm (0.031–0.098 in) wide and sparsely hairy. The flowers are bisexual and arranged singly or in pairs. The fruiting perianth is brown when dry, with a thin tube about 1 mm (0.039 in) long, and a horizontal wing about 7–10 mm (0.28–0.39 in) in diameter. ^{[2] [4] [5]}

Taxonomy

This species was first formally described in 1848 by John Lindley who gave it the name Kochia villosa in Thomas Mitchell's Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Tropical Australia. ^{[6] [7]} In 1975 Paul Graham Wilson transferred the species to Maireana as M. villosa in the journal Nuytsia . ^[8] The specific epithet (villosa) means 'villous', or 'with long, soft hairs. ^[9]

Distribution and habitat

Maireana villosa is widespread in mainland Australia where it grows in loam, clay or sand, often in stony soils or on red-earth plains and dune swales in Western Australia, ^[10] the Northern Territory, ^[4] South Australia, ^[3] Queensland, ^[11] and western New South Wales. ^[2]

References

1. "Maireana villosa". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
2. Jacobs, Surrey Wilfrid Laurance. "Maireana villosa". Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
3. "Maireana villosa". Seeds of South Australia. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
4. "Maireana villosa". Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
5. Wilson, Paul G. "Maireana villosa". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
6. "Kochia villosa". APNI. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
7. Lindley, John (1848). Mitchell, Thomas (ed.). Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Tropical Australia. London: Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans. p. 91. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
8. "Maireana villosa". APNI. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
9. George, Alex S.; Sharr, Francis A. (2023). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings - A Glossary (fifth ed.). Kardinya: Four Gables Press. p. 348. ISBN   9780645629538.
10. "Maireana villosa". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
11. "Maireana villosa". Queensland Government WildNet. Retrieved 7 January 2026.