Philotheca pungens

Last updated

Prickly waxflower
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Sapindales
Family: Rutaceae
Genus: Philotheca
Species:
P. pungens
Binomial name
Philotheca pungens
Synonyms [1]
  • Eriostemon pungensLindl.
  • Phebalium pungens(Lindl.) Benth.

Philotheca pungens, commonly known as prickly waxflower, [2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is an undershrub with linear to narrow oblong or needle-like leaves and white flowers usually arranged singly in leaf axils.

Contents

Description

Philotheca pungens is an undershrub that typically grows to a height of 60 cm (24 in) but often lies on the ground. The leaves are linear to narrow oblong or needle-like, 8–12 mm (0.31–0.47 in) long, flat on the upper surface but prominently keeled on the lower side. The flowers are usually arranged singly in leaf axils on a pedicel 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) long with lance-shaped bracteoles at the base. The sepals are fleshy, more or less round, about 1 mm (0.039 in) long and the petals are egg-shaped, about 4 mm (0.16 in) long and white, sometimes pink on the back. The stamens are covered with long, soft hairs and the stye is glabrous. Flowering occurs from August to November and the fruit is 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) long and beaked. [3] [4] [5]

Taxonomy

This species was first recorded by explorer Thomas Mitchell in 1836 when he ascended Mount Hope in northern Victoria. Mitchell described the plant as "a remarkable new species of Eriostemon forming a scrubby spiny bush, with much the appearance of a Leptospermum ". [6] It was first formally described in 1838 by botanist John Lindley, who gave it the name Eriostemon pungens and the description was published in Mitchell's book, Three Expeditions into the interior of Eastern Australia . [7] In 1998, Paul G. Wilson changed the name to Philotheca pungens in the journal Nuytsia . [8] [9]

Distribution and habitat

Philotheca pungens grows in heathland and is found in south and south-east South Australia and in central and western Victoria as far east as Bendigo. Associated tree species include Eucalyptus leptophylla and Eucalyptus incrassata . [2] [3] [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Philotheca verrucosa</i> Species of plant

Philotheca verrucosa, commonly known as fairy wax-flower or Bendigo wax-flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a small shrub with prominently glandular-warty branchlets, heart-shaped or egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, and white flowers usually arranged singly in leaf axils.

<i>Philotheca myoporoides</i> Species of flowering plant

Philotheca myoporoides, commonly known as long-leaf wax flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a shrub with sessile, oblong to egg-shaped, glandular-warty leaves and white to pink flowers arranged singly in leaf axils. Prior to 1998 it was known as Eriostemon myoporoides.

<i>Philotheca trachyphylla</i> Species of flowering plant

Philotheca trachyphylla, commonly known as rock wax-flower, is a species of plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a shrub or small tree with glandular-warty, oblong to narrow egg-shaped leaves and white flowers arranged singly or in twos or threes, in leaf axils.

<i>Philotheca coccinea</i> Species of plant

Philotheca coccinea is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a shrub with club-shaped leaves that are warty on the lower surface, and red to pink flowers arranged singly in leaf axils.

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

Philotheca deserti is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to inland Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with narrow spindle-shaped, glandular-warty leaves and white flowers arranged singly in leaf axils.

<i>Philotheca epilosa</i> Species of plant

Philotheca epilosa is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a shrub with egg-shaped to lance-shaped leaves with the narrower end toward the base and crowded near the ends of the glandular-warty branchlets, and white flowers usually arranged singly on the ends of the branchlets.

Philotheca fitzgeraldii is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south of Western Australia. It is an erect, compact or spreading shrub with cylindrical, glandular-warty leaves and white flowers arranged singly in leaf axils and on the ends of branchlets.

Philotheca glabra is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the inland south-west of Western Australia. It is a small shrub with elliptical to club-shaped leaves and white flowers tinged with pink and arranged singly or in twos or three on the ends of branchlets.

<i>Philotheca linearis</i> Species of plant

Philotheca linearis, commonly known as the rock wallaby shrub or narrow-leaf wax-flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to an inland areas of southern Australia. It is a shrub with glandular-warty branchlets and leaves, club-shaped to cylindrical leaves and white flowers arranged singly in leaf axils.

<i>Philotheca myoporoides <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> acuta</i> Subspecies of flowering plant

Philotheca myoporoides subsp. acuta is a subspecies of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a shrub with narrow oblong or narrow elliptic leaves and white flowers arranged singly or in groups of up to three in leaf axils.

<i>Philotheca myoporoides <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> brevipedunculata</i> Subspecies of flowering plant

Philotheca myoporoides subsp. brevipedunculata is a subspecies of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a shrub with oblong or egg-shaped leaves and white or pink flowers arranged singly or in groups of up to three in leaf axils.

Philotheca nutans is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, densely-branched shrub with club-shaped to cylindrical, glandular-warty leaves and pendent, pale yellow to pale red flowers arranged singly in leaf axils.

<i>Philotheca pachyphylla</i> Species of plant

Philotheca pachyphylla is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small shrub with fleshy, oblong, prominently glandular-warty leaves and white flowers arranged singly in leaf axils.

<i>Philotheca pinoides</i> Species of plant

Philotheca pinoides is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, erect undershrub with needle-shaped, glandular-warty leaves and pale pink or red flowers arranged singly or in groups of up to three in the axil of leaves at the end of branchlets.

<i>Philotheca queenslandica</i> Species of plant

Philotheca queenslandica is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Queensland. It is a wiry shrub with elliptic to egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end toward the base and densely crowded near the ends of the glandular-warty branchlets, and cream-coloured flowers tinged with pink and arranged singly in leaf axils.

Philotheca rhomboidea is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small undershrub with thick, broadly elliptic to round leaves and white to pale pink flowers arranged singly or in twos or threes at the end of branchlets.

<i>Philotheca sericea</i> Species of plant

Philotheca sericea is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an undershrub with small oval to elliptical leaves and white to pink flowers usually arranged singly at the end of branchlets.

<i>Philotheca thryptomenoides</i> Species of flowering plant

Philotheca thryptomenoides is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small undershrub with oval to club-shaped leaves and white flowers with a broad, reddish-brown stripe, arranged singly on the ends of branchlets.

<i>Philotheca tomentella</i> Species of flowering plant

Philotheca tomentella is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an undershrub with small club-shaped to cylindrical leaves and white flowers with a pale red central stripe, arranged singly or in groups of up to four on the ends of branchlets.

Philotheca wonganensis, commonly known as Wongan philotheca, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub with thin, cylindrical leaves and white flowers with a pink central stripe, usually arranged singly in leaf axils.

References

  1. 1 2 "Philotheca pungens". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Philotheca pungens (Rutaceae) Prickly Wax-flower". South Australian Seed Conservation Service. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  3. 1 2 Wild Plants of Victoria (database). Viridans Biological Databases & Department of Sustainability and Environment. 2009.
  4. Wilson, Paul G.; Wilson, Annette J.G. (ed.) (2013). Flora of Australia (Volume 26). Canberra: Australian Biological Resources Study. p. 411. Retrieved 12 August 2020.{{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)
  5. 1 2 Bayly, Michale J. "Philotheca pungens". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  6. Mitchell, Thomas (July 27, 2004). The Project Gutenberg EBook of Three Expeditions into the Interior of Eastern Australia, Vol 2 (of 2) . Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  7. "Eriostemon pungens". APNI. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  8. "Philotheca pungens". APNI. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  9. Wilson, Paul G. (1998). "A Taxonomic Review of the genera Eriostemon and Philotheca". Nuytsia. 12 (2): 261. Retrieved 12 August 2020.