Melaleuca sphaerodendra

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Melaleuca sphaerodendra
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Melaleuca
Species:
M. sphaerodendra
Binomial name
Melaleuca sphaerodendra
Synonyms [1]

Callistemon gnidioides Guillaumin

Melaleuca sphaerodendra is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to Grande Terre, the main island of New Caledonia. It is one of only a few members of its genus to occur outside Australia and was previously known as Callistemon gnidioides Guillaumin.

Contents

Description

Melaleuca sphaerodendra is shrub or small tree growing to a height of 10 m (30 ft) with its branchlets densely covered with hairs. The leaves are 7–19 mm (0.3–0.7 in) long, 2–5 mm (0.08–0.2 in) wide, narrow oval to egg-shaped, rounded at the end and have 3 to 5 parallel veins. When young, the leaves are covered with hairs similar to those on the branchlets but become glabrous as they mature. [2]

The flowers are white or cream and occur on the ends of the branches which continue to grow after flowering. The petals are 1–2.2 mm (0.04–0.09 in) long and the stamens are arranged in five bundles around the flower, with 2 or 3 stamens per bundle. Flowering occurs mainly from July and September and is followed by the fruit which are woody capsules 2.2 mm (0.09 in) long. [2] [3]

Taxonomy and naming

Callistemon gnidioides was first formally described in 1934 by André Guillaumin, [4] then transferred to the genus Melaleuca as Melaleuca sphaerodendra in 1998 by Lyndley Craven and John Dawson in the journal Adansonia. [5] The specific epithet (sphaerodendra) is from the Ancient Greek σφαῖρα (sphaîra) meaning “ball" [6] :120 and δένδρον (déndron) meaning “tree” [6] :813 referring to the roughly spherical crown of the tree. [2]

There are two varieties of this species:

Distribution and habitat

Melaleuca sphaerodendra is found on Grande Terre:

References

  1. 1 2 "Melaleuca sphaerodendra". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Brophy, Joseph J.; Craven, Lyndley A.; Doran, John C. (2013). Melaleucas : their botany, essential oils and uses. Canberra: Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research. p. 333. ISBN   9781922137517.
  3. "Melaleuca sphaerodendra (Espece)". Endemia Association. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
  4. "Callistemon gnidioides". APNI. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  5. "Melaleuca sphaerodendra". APNI. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
  6. 1 2 Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.