Green five corners | |
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Styphelia viridis at Waterfall | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Ericales |
Family: | Ericaceae |
Genus: | Styphelia |
Species: | S. tubiflora |
Binomial name | |
Styphelia tubiflora | |
Styphelia viridis, commonly called green five corners, is a plant in the family Ericaceae and is endemic to the east coast of Australia. It owes its common name to the appearance of its fruit - a drupe with a flat top and five distinct ribs, and to the colour of its flowers. The flowers appear in autumn and winter and are a source of food for honeyeaters. [1]
In describing this species, Henry Cranke Andrews noted: "Few of the plants from New Holland have excited more admiration than the Styphelias....our present plant, together with the other species already known from dried specimens, lead us to conjecture that the genus is as copious as any, Banksias not excepted, from that country." [2]
Styphelia viridis is an erect or straggly, small shrub growing to a height of no more than 1.8 metres (6 ft) and usually much less. The branchlets are stiff and covered with very fine, white hairs. The leaves are similar to those of other styphelias, 12–29 millimetres (0.5–1 in) long, 2.9–7.6 millimetres (0.1–0.3 in) wide and lance shaped, tapering to a fine point. The stalk of the leaf is 1–2 millimetres (0.04–0.08 in) long and the blade of the leaf is flat and glabrous with parallel veins. [3]
The flowers are a translucent bottle-green. The sepals are green, 8.5–16 millimetres (0.3–0.6 in) long and glabrous. The petals are fused into a tube 14–23 millimetres (0.6–0.9 in) long with the ends of the petals rolled back, exposing the hairy inner surface of the tube. The filaments of the stamens and the style extend well beyond the tube, both about 10–16 millimetres (0.4–0.6 in) long. The anthers are brown and a further 3.2–6.3 millimetres (0.1–0.2 in) long. Flowering occurs from April to August and is followed by the fruit which is a flat-topped, five-sided greenish-red drupe. [1] [3] [4]
Styphelia viridis was first described in 1803 by Henry Cranke Andrews in The Botanist's Repository for New, and Rare Plants. [5] The specific epithet (viridis) is a Latin word meaning "green" [6] referring to the colour of the flowers. [1]
There are two subspecies recognised:
Styphelia viridis occurs on the coast and ranges of New South Wales and southern Queensland growing in heath and dry sclerophyll forest on sandy soils.
This species is not well known in cultivation. It can be grown from seed or cuttings. It requires a semi-shaded position, well drained soil and adequate watering. [1]
Crowea saligna, commonly known as willow-leaved crowea, is a plant in the rue family, Rutaceae and is endemic to eastern New South Wales in Australia. It is a small shrub with attractive, pink, star-shaped flowers and is commonly cultivated.
Calothamnus quadrifidus, commonly known as one-sided bottlebrush, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. The common name alludes to the arrangement of the flowers in the inflorescence which line up on one side of the stem. It is a shrub with grey-green, pine-like foliage covered with soft hairs and red, four-part flowers in spring. Widely cultivated because of its attractive foliage, colourful, unusual and prolific flowers, it grows in a variety of habitats and soils. In 2010, Alex George published a review of the species based on recent research and described a number of new subspecies.
Eremophila maculata, also known as spotted emu bush or spotted fuchsia-bush, is a plant in the figwort family Scrophulariaceae, and is endemic to Australia. It is the most widespread of its genus in nature and probably the most frequently cultivated Eremophila. It is a spreading, often densely branched shrub with variable leaf shape and flower colour, but the other features of the flowers such as the size and shape of the parts are consistent. The inside of the flower is often, but not always, spotted.
Eremophila debilis, the winter apple or amulla, is a flowering plant in the figwort family Scrophulariaceae, and is endemic to an area extending from north Queensland to near the border between New South Wales and Victoria in Australia. It is a prostrate shrub with elliptic to lance-shaped or egg-shaped leaves and white, rarely deep mauve flowers.
Pandorea pandorana, commonly known as the wonga wonga vine or wonga-vine, is a species of flowering plant in the family Bignoniaceae and is native to Australia, Malesia and the southwestern Pacific region. It is a woody scrambler or climber with pinnate leaves, juvenile leaves differing from those of mature plants. The flowers are tubular or funnel-shaped and white with purple markings and the fruit are capsules containing winged seeds. It is easy species to germinate and is a popular garden plant. Common cultivars include the yellow-flowered P. 'Golden Showers', the white-flowered P. 'Snowbells', and the pinkish P. 'Ruby Belle'. The wood was used in making spears for woomeras in the Central and Western deserts.
Styphelia is a genus of shrubs in the family Ericaceae and is endemic to Australia. Most have minute or small leaves with a sharp tip, single, tube-shaped flowers arranged in leaf axils and with the ends of the petals rolled back with hairs in the inside of the tube.
Melaleuca fulgens, commonly known as the scarlet honey myrtle, is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory. It is notable for its showy orange, red or purple flowers, unusual foliage and fruit, and is a popular garden plant. It is a member of Melaleuca, a large and diverse genus whose members range from large trees such as M. quinquenervia, to small shrubs.
Melaleuca williamsii is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to an area between north-eastern New South Wales and south eastern Queensland in Australia. It is a distinctive shrub with stiff branches, silvery new growth, prickly leaves and spikes of purple flowers in late spring. It is classified as a vulnerable species under the Australian Government Endangered Species Protection Act.
Persoonia linearis, commonly known as the narrow-leaved geebung, is a shrub native to New South Wales and Victoria in eastern Australia. It reaches 3 m (9.8 ft), or occasionally 5 m (16 ft), in height and has thick, dark grey papery bark. The leaves are, as the species name suggests, more or less linear in shape, and are up to 9 cm (3.5 in) long, and 0.1 to 0.7 cm wide. The small yellow flowers appear in summer, autumn and early winter, followed by small green fleshy fruit known as drupes. Within the genus Persoonia, it is a member of the Lanceolata group of 58 closely related species. P. linearis interbreeds with several other species where they grow together.
Persoonia cornifolia is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a shrub with elliptic to egg-shaped leaves and hairy yellow flowers, and grows in northern New South Wales and south-eastern Queensland.
Lasiopetalum ferrugineum, commonly known as rusty velvet-bush, is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family and is endemic to eastern Australia. Growing up to a metre tall, much of the plant is covered in rusty hairs. It is found in forest and heathland.
Persoonia procumbens is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to part of the New England Tableland. It is a prostrate shrub with rather fleshy, relatively large leaves and small groups of cylindrical yellow flowers. It is similar to P. daphnoides but has darker hairs on the young branches and smaller, less hairy flowers.
Persoonia silvatica, commonly known as the forest geebung, is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a shrub or tree with more or less lance-shaped leaves and small groups of yellow flowers with white centres. It grows mainly in forest near the border between New South Wales and Victoria.
Persoonia chamaepeuce, commonly known as the dwarf geebung or heathy geebung, is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a prostrate shrub with crowded, linear leaves and yellow flowers in the leaf axils.
Persoonia oblongata is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is an erect to spreading shrub with narrow elliptic to broad egg-shaped leaves and yellow flowers on long, curved pedicels and is found from the lower Blue Mountains, west to Rylstone.
Persoonia adenantha is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is an upright shrub or small tree with smooth, elliptic to lance-shaped leaves and groups of hairy yellow flowers. It has sometimes been confused with P. cornifolia and P. stradbrokensis.
Myoporum boninense is a plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae. It is a shrub with thick, fleshy, glossy leaves, white flowers in small groups and shiny lilac to pale purple fruits. It grows in coastal heath in New South Wales and Queensland in Australia and on islands in the north west Pacific Ocean.
Persoonia acuminata is a plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a spreading or prostrate shrub with relatively small leaves and cylindrical yellow flowers arranged singly or in groups of up to sixteen in leaf axils or on the ends of the branches. It grows in moist forest on the higher parts of the tablelands.
Styphelia perileuca, commonly known as montane green five-corners, is a plant in the heath family Ericaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is an erect, spreading shrub with broad leaves with a spiky tip, and yellowish-green and red tube-shaped flowers with the petals rolled back. It is only known from the eastern edge of the New England Tableland.
Styphelia triflora, commonly known as pink five-corners, is a flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae. It is an erect, spreading shrub with broad leaves with a spiky tip, and usually pink tubular flowers with the petals rolled back. It is found in New South Wales and Queensland growing on loam or sandy soils.