"},"synonyms":{"wt":"* ''Melaleuca linariifolia'' var. ''typica'' [[Domin]]\n* ''Melaleuca stricta'' [[Dum.Cours.]]\n* ''Myrtoleucodendron linariifolium'' (Sm.) [[Otto Kuntze|Kuntze]]\n* ''Ozandra hyssopifolia'' ([[Cav.]]) [[Raf.]]"}},"i":1}}]}" id="mwBA">
Snow-in-summer | |
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Melaleuca linariifolia | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Myrtales |
Family: | Myrtaceae |
Genus: | Melaleuca |
Species: | M. linariifolia |
Binomial name | |
Melaleuca linariifolia | |
Synonyms [1] | |
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Melaleuca linariifolia is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is commonly known as snow-in-summer, narrow-leaved paperbark, flax-leaved paperbark and in the language of the Gadigal people as budjur. A hardy plant, it flowers prolifically in late spring or summer, making it a popular garden shrub or small tree in temperate places. Melaleuca trichostachya is a similar species but its leaves are arranged differently and the fruits have projecting valves.
Melaleuca linariifolia is a small tree growing to a height of 6–10 m (20–30 ft) with distinctive and attractive white or creamy white, papery bark and a dense canopy. Its leaves are arranged in alternating pairs (decussate), glabrous except when very young, 17–45 mm (0.7–2 in) long, 1–4 mm (0.04–0.2 in) wide, linear to lance-shaped and with a distinct mid-vein. [2] [3]
The flowers are white to creamy-white, perfumed and arranged in spikes on the ends of branches which continue to grow after flowering, sometimes also in the upper leaf axils. Each spike is up to 40 mm (2 in) wide and long and contains 4 to 20 individual flowers. The petals are 2.5–3.3 mm (0.1–0.1 in) long and fall off as the flower matures. The stamens are arranged in five bundles around the flower and each bundle contains 32 to 73 stamens.
The flowers cover the tree over a relatively short period, between October and February and are followed by fruit which are woody capsules, 2.5–4 mm (0.1–0.2 in) long and 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long scattered along the stems. The fruiting capsules have valves which do not project beyond the rim of the capsule. [2] [3] [4]
Melaleuca linariifolia was first formally described in 1797 by James Edward Smith in Transactions of the Linnean Society of London . [5] [6] Smith noted that "This, we are told by Mr White, is a large tree, the bark of which is very thick and spongy, serving the purpose of tinder." The specific epithet linariifolia means "with leaves like Linaria " (a genus of plants in the family Plantaginaceae). [2] [7]
Snow-in-summer occurs from the Maryborough district in Queensland to Bawley Point in the Ulladulla district in New South Wales. There is also a disjunct population in the Blackdown Tableland National Park in Queensland. It is found in heath and dry sclerophyll forest habitats, usually growing near watercourses or swamps. [4]
Melaleuca linariifolia is cultivated as an ornamental tree for parks and gardens and is also used as a screen or windbreak in Australia [8] [9] and overseas. [10] It is popular as a nature strip tree in Melbourne in Victoria. [3] It tolerates both dry and boggy conditions and is frost hardy. [3] It should be planted with caution as it can damage wastewater pipes, [11] and is easily ignitable, so should not be planted in fire-prone areas. It has also become a garden escape in Western Australia, [12] it is however suitable for planting under powerlines [13] and is a food or habitat sources for native animals, including many insects. [13]
There is a range of cultivars including dwarf forms such as 'Snowstorm' [14] which grows to a height of 1.5 metres (5 ft), 'Seafoam' at 2.5 metres (8 ft), [8] and 'Claret Tops' at 1.5 metres (5 ft), which features red coloured new growth. [15]
This species is rich in essential oils, especially Terpinen-4-ol. It has a wider range of tolerance to environmental conditions than the main current source of "tea tree" oil, Melaleuca alternifolia and therefore has potential as an alternative. [2]
Melaleuca is a genus of nearly 300 species of plants in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, commonly known as paperbarks, honey-myrtles, bottlebrushes or tea-trees. They range in size from small shrubs that rarely grow to more than 16 m (52 ft) high, to trees up to 35 m (115 ft). Their flowers generally occur in groups, forming a "head" or "spike" resembling a brush used for cleaning bottles, containing up to 80 individual flowers.
Melaleuca quinquenervia, commonly known as the broad-leaved paperbark, paper bark tea tree, punk tree or niaouli, is a small- to medium-sized tree of the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. It grows as a spreading tree up to 20 m (70 ft) tall, with its trunk covered by a white, beige and grey thick papery bark. The grey-green leaves are egg-shaped, and cream or white bottlebrush-like flowers appear from late spring to autumn. It was first formally described in 1797 by the Spanish naturalist Antonio José Cavanilles.
Melaleuca styphelioides, known as the prickly-leaved paperbark or prickly paperbark, is a plant native to eastern Australia. It is a tree with spongy bark, prickly leaves and spikes of creamy-white flowers.
Melaleuca leucadendra, commonly known as weeping paperbark, long-leaved paperbark or white paperbark is a species of woody plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is widespread in northern Australia, Southeast Asia, New Guinea and the Torres Strait Islands. It grows as a tree to more than 20 m (70 ft) with a trunk covered with thick, white, papery bark and weeping thinner branches. It has a long flowering season, can flower at almost any time of the year and is often grown as a tree in parks and on roadsides. It was the first melaleuca to be described and was described from a specimen growing in Indonesia.
Melaleuca lanceolata commonly known as black paperbark, moonah, Rottnest Island teatree and western black tea tree is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is native to Australia where it occurs in Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. It is a densely foliaged tree with rough bark, which flowers prolifically in summer.
Melaleuca viridiflora, commonly known as broad-leaved paperbark, is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is native to woodlands, swamps and streams in monsoonal areas of northern Australia and New Guinea. It is usually a small tree with an open canopy, papery bark and spikes of cream, yellow, green or red flowers.
Eucalyptus longifolia, commonly known as woollybutt, is a species of medium-sized tree that is endemic to eastern Australia. It has thick, fibrous bark on the trunk and larger branches, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three, white flowers and cup-shaped to cylindrical or hemispherical fruit. The drooping flower heads in groups of three are a distinguishing feature. It grows in heavy soils often near water.
Melaleuca trichostachya is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is native to inland northern New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory in Australia. It is a small tree, similar to the commonly cultivated Melaleuca styphelioides, with its prickly foliage and fluffy spikes of white or cream flowers but there are differences in the leaf arrangement and fruiting capsules.
Melaleuca halmaturorum, commonly known as South Australian swamp paperbark, kangaroo honey-myrtle or salt paper-bark is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria. It is often a tree with an unusual, crooked form, sometimes looking like an enlarged example of bonsai.
Melaleuca ericifolia, commonly known as swamp paperbark, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and the genus Melaleuca, native to south-eastern Australia. It is a rather variable species and some specimens resemble Melaleuca armillaris but its papery bark and smaller, more prolific flower heads distinguish it from that species. It often grows in swampy areas and the draining and clearing of these has reduced the numbers of the species, especially around Port Philip Bay near Melbourne. It is also similar to Melaleuca pustulata, a Tasmanian endemic, but that species only grows in dry heath.
Melaleuca squarrosa, commonly known as scented paperbark, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to south eastern parts of Australia, especially Tasmania. It is an attractive shrub with dense foliage and arching branches and it flowers profusely in spring or early summer, bearing spikes of perfumed yellow to white flowers.
Gaudium trinervium, commonly known as flaky-barked tea-tree, slender tea-tree or paperbark tree, is a species of shrub or small tree that is endemic to eastern Australia. It has papery bark that is shed in thin, flaking layers, narrow elliptic to broadly egg-shaped leaves with the narrower at the base, white flowers and silky-hairy fruit that falls from the plant when mature.
Melaleuca decora, commonly known as the white feather honeymyrtle, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is native to eastern Australia. It is a large shrub to small tree with papery bark, lance-shaped leaves and sweet-smelling, creamy-coloured flowers in summer. It grows in near-coastal forest and swamps in New South Wales and Queensland.
Melaleuca nodosa, commonly known as the prickly-leaved paperbark, is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a shrub or small tree with narrow, sometimes needle-like leaves and profuse heads of yellow flowers as early as April or as late as January.
Melaleuca dealbata, commonly known as karnbor or blue paperbark, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is native to tropical areas in northern Australia, New Guinea and Indonesia. It is a medium to large leafy tree, growing in wet areas such as on the edges of coastal lagoons. It has papery bark, relatively large, blue-green leaves and spikes of cream-coloured flowers over a long period.
Melaleuca nervosa, commonly known as fibrebark, is a shrub or tree in the myrtle family Myrtaceae and is endemic to northern Australia. It is a narrow-leaved, tropical paperbark with yellow-green and red-flowering forms. As with some other melaleucas, this species has many uses to Indigenous Australians.
Melaleuca deanei, commonly known as Deane's paperbark, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to New South Wales in Australia. It is a shrub with flaky bark, narrow oval leaves and spikes of white flowers in spring and summer. The species only exists in a few isolated populations and is classified as vulnerable.
Melaleuca groveana, commonly known as Grove's paperbark is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae and is endemic to New South Wales and Queensland in Australia. It is an uncommon species with relatively large heads of white flowers in spring, the styles of which are significantly longer than the stamens.
Melaleuca irbyana, commonly known as weeping paperbark, bushhouse paperbark and swamp paperbark, is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae and is endemic to New South Wales and Queensland in Australia. It is a shrub or small tree, often growing in pure stands in poorly drained areas. Its distribution is limited and it has been classified as an endangered species under legislation in both states and the forest as critically endangered under Australian government legislation.
Melaleuca tamariscina, commonly known as bush-house paperbark or tamarix honey-myrtle is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to central Queensland in Australia. It grows to the height of a small tree with small, scale-like leaves that are pressed against the branches, and has a papery bark and a weeping habit.