Prostanthera palustris

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Swamp mint-bush
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Prostanthera
Species:
P. palustris
Binomial name
Prostanthera palustris
Prostanthera palustrisDistA65.png
Occurrence data from AVH

Prostanthera palustris, commonly known as swamp mint-bush, [2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to a restricted area of New South Wales. It is a low, spreading, weak shrub with spatula-shaped leaves and pale mauve and white flowers with yellow spots in the petal tube.

Contents

Description

Prostanthera palustris is a low, spreading, weak shrub that typically grows to a height of 0.2–0.3 m (7.9 in–11.8 in), is not aromatic, and has branches with two longitudinal ridges. The leaves are dull green above, paler below, spatula-shaped, 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) long and 3.5–5 mm (0.14–0.20 in) wide on a petiole about 1–2 mm (0.039–0.079 in) long. The flowers are arranged in groups of four to ten in upper leaf axils on pedicels 0.5–1.5 mm (0.020–0.059 in) long. The sepals are light green and form a tube 2.5–3 mm (0.098–0.118 in) long with two lobes, the lower lobe 1.5–3 mm (0.059–0.118 in) long and the upper lobe 1.5–2 mm (0.059–0.079 in) long. The petals are pale mauve and white with yellow dots inside, 8–10 mm (0.31–0.39 in) long forming a tube 4 mm (0.16 in) long with two lips. The central lobe of the lower lip is 4–4.5 mm (0.16–0.18 in) long and 4.5–5 mm (0.18–0.20 in) wide and the side lobes are about 4 mm (0.16 in) long and 2.5 mm (0.098 in) wide. The upper lip is about 2.5 mm (0.098 in) long and 6–6.5 mm (0.24–0.26 in) wide. Flowering mainly occurs from February to June. [2] [3]

Taxonomy

Prostanthera palustris was first formally described in 1997 by Barry Conn in the journal Telopea from material collected in Bundjalung National Park in 1990. [3] [4]

Distribution and habitat

Swamp mint-bush grows in wet coastal shrubland and heathland in Bundjalung National Park. [3]

Conservation status

This mintbush is classified as "vulnerable" under the Australian Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and the New South Wales Government Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 . The main threats to the species include inappropriate fire regimes, trampling and vegetation clearance. [5]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Prostanthera denticulata</i>

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<i>Prostanthera saxicola</i>

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<i>Prostanthera staurophylla</i>

Prostanthera staurophylla, commonly known as Tenterfield mint-bush, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to a small area on the New England Tableland of New South Wales. It is an erect to spreading, strongly aromatic shrub with hairy branches, deeply lobed leaves and bluish-mauve flowers with darker markings.

<i>Prostanthera junonis</i>

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<i>Prostanthera askania</i>

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<i>Prostanthera canaliculata</i>

Prostanthera canaliculata is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, erect shrub with hairy branchlets, narrow egg-shaped to narrow elliptical leaves and pale blue or pale violet to white flowers with no markings.

<i>Prostanthera cineolifera</i>

Prostanthera cineolifera, commonly known as the Singleton mint bush, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to eastern New South Wales. It is an erect shrub with hairy branches, narrow egg-shaped leaves and clusters of pale mauve to dark purple-mauve flowers arranged on the ends of branchlets.

<i>Prostanthera densa</i>

Prostanthera densa, commonly known as villous mint-bush, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to near-coastal areas of New South Wales. It is an erect, often compact shrub with aromatic branches, egg-shaped leaves, and mauve flowers with orange markings inside.

<i>Prostanthera eungella</i>

Prostanthera eungella is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to the Eungella region in Queensland. It is an erect shrub with narrow egg-shaped leaves with small teeth, and mauve flowers that are white inside the petal tube and arranged in upper leaf axils.

<i>Prostanthera gilesii</i>

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<i>Prostanthera hindii</i>

Prostanthera hindii is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to the Central Tablelands of New South Wales. It is a small, erect shrub with densely hairy branches, egg-shaped leaves, and mauve flowers with deep mauve to dark purple colouration inside the petal tube.

<i>Prostanthera makinsonii</i>

Prostanthera makinsonii is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to a restricted area of New South Wales. It is a spreading shrub with strongly aromatic, egg-shaped leaves and mostly glabrous purple flowers arranged in bunches of eight to twelve in upper leaf axils.

<i>Prostanthera oleoides</i>

Prostanthera oleoides is a species of flowering plant that is endemic to central Queensland. It is an open, erect shrub with four-sided branchlets, narrow elliptic, oblong or egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, and mauve flowers with purple to dark mauve markings.

<i>Prostanthera petraea</i>

Prostanthera petraea is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to a restricted area near the Queensland–New South Wales border. It is a large shrub to small tree with ridged, glandular branches, egg-shaped leaves and white flowers usually without markings.

<i>Prostanthera sericea</i>

Prostanthera sericea, commonly known as silky mintbush or walyuwalyu, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to inland Australia. It is an erect shrub with hairy branches, cylindrical leaves and white flowers with mauve or purple streaks.

<i>Prostanthera tallowa</i>

Prostanthera tallowa is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to the Kangaroo Valley area of New South Wales. It is an erect, aromatic shrub with narrow egg-shaped to linear leaves and mauve to light purple flowers with darker dots inside the petal tube.

<i>Prostanthera tozerana</i>

Prostanthera tozerana is a species of flowering plant that is endemic to Mount Tozer in Queensland. It is a small, compact shrub with hairy branchlets, thick egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, and pale purplish-mauve flowers.

References

  1. "Prostanthera palustris". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 Conn, Barry J. "Prostanthera palustris". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 Conn, Barry J. (1997). "Four rare and/or threatened new species of Prostanthera Section Prostanthera (Labiatae) from New South Wales". Telopea. 7 (3): 241–244. doi: 10.7751/telopea19971017 .
  4. "Prostanthera palustris". APNI. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  5. "Swamp mint-bush - profile". New South Wales Government Office of Environment and Heritage. Retrieved 15 September 2020.