Verticordia galeata

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Verticordia galeata
Verticordia galeata (1).jpg
Verticordia galeata growing in Kings Park
Status DECF P2.svg
Priority Two — Poorly Known Taxa (DEC)
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Verticordia
Subgenus: Verticordia subg. Chrysoma
Section: Verticordia sect. Jugata
Species:
V. galeata
Binomial name
Verticordia galeata

Verticordia galeata is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a woody shrub with thin, pointed cylinder-shaped leaves and heads of bright yellow flowers on the ends of the branches in spring.

Contents

Verticordia galeata flower detail Verticordia galeata (2).jpg
Verticordia galeata flower detail

Description

Verticordia galeata is a shrub which grows to 1 m (3 ft) high and wide and which is irregularly branched. Its leaves are linear in shape, almost circular in cross-section, 10–30 mm (0.4–1 in) long with a pointed end. [2]

The flowers are honey-scented and arranged in corymb-like groups near the ends of the branches, each flower on an erect stalk 12–20 mm (0.5–0.8 in) long. The floral cup is shaped like half a sphere, about 2 mm (0.08 in) long, glabrous and has a slightly warty surface. The sepals are bright yellow, spreading, 5 mm (0.2 in) long, with 7 to 9 densely hairy lobes. The petals are also bright yellow, erect 5 mm (0.2 in), with long, spreading, finger-like projections. The stamens possess an inflated appendage, a hood, that nearly covers their tips and the staminodes are pointed and triangular. The style is straight, 2.5–3.7 mm (0.098–0.15 in) long, and glabrous. Flowering time is from September to November. [2]

This verticordia is similar to V. chrysantha, V, chrysanthella and V. nobilis but is distinguished from them by its longer leaves, longer flower stalks and bright yellow, non-fading flowers. [2]

Cultivated specimen of V. galeata in Kings Park, Perth Verticordia galeata.jpg
Cultivated specimen of V. galeata in Kings Park, Perth

Taxonomy and naming

Verticordia galeata was first formally described by Alex George in 1991 and the description was published in Nuytsia from specimens collected near the Murchison River in Kalbarri National Park by Alex George and Bob Wemm. [1] [3] The specific epithet (galeata) is derived from the Latin word galeatus meaning "helmeted". [4]

George placed this species in subgenus Chrysoma, section Jugata along with V. chrysanthella , V. chrysantha , V. brevifolia , V. coronata , V. amphigia and V. laciniata . [3]

Distribution and habitat

The known populations, of which there are few, are found on red sand, amid sandstone gorges, in the open scrublands of its small range around the lower Murchison River in the northern section of the Geraldton Sandplains biogeographic region. [2] [5] [6]

Conservation

Verticordia galeata is classified as "Priority Two" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife meaning that it is poorly known and from only one or a few locations. [7] It does not possess a lignotuber, so is susceptible to altered fire regimes; the distribution range is within the Kalbarri National Park, a protected area that has become vulnerable to high intensity fires. [2]

Use in horticulture

Flowers on cultivated specimens of this plant last much longer than those in the wild and their bright colour and sweet scent make them attractive garden plants. Plants have been propagated from cuttings and by grafting onto Darwinia citriodora rootstock. Established plants prefer full sun and well drained soil and some specimens have even performed well in winter-rainfall areas. [2]

Related Research Articles

Verticordia aereiflora is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a thin but bushy shrub with small leaves and greenish-yellow flowers with red spots and red fringes on the sepals.

Verticordia amphigia commonly known as pixie ears is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is usually an open, much-branched shrub with narrow leaves and yellow flowers which sometimes produce a "sea" of colour in the wild. The flowers are surrounded by boat-shaped bracteoles which give the plant both its common and scientific names.

Verticordia aurea, commonly known as buttercups is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a slender, sometimes bushy shrub with a single stem at the base, cylindrical leaves and heads of scented, golden-yellow flowers in spring.

Verticordia brevifolia is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small shrub with shortly cylindrical leaves and bright yellow flowers which turn red as they age. There are two subspecies, both of which have limited distributions and a priority conservation rating.

<i>Verticordia subulata</i> Species of shrub

Verticordia subulata is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a woody shrub with pointed, linear leaves and in spring, heads of yellow flowers which turn red as they age.

<i>Verticordia picta</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia picta, commonly known as painted featherflower or china cups, is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small to medium sized shrub with pink and cupped flowers that are sweetly scented.

<i>Verticordia cooloomia</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia cooloomia, commonly known as Cooloomia verticordia, is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an open, spreading shrub with large heads of sharply scented yellow flowers and is only known from areas in and near to the Cooloomia Nature Reserve, near the Murchison River.

<i>Verticordia chrysantha</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia chrysantha, commonly known as yellow featherflower or yellow Morrison, is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small, slow-growing, rather bushy shrub with bright yellow flowers which often turn reddish-brown as they age. It is widespread in the south-west of the state.

<i>Verticordia chrysanthella</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia chrysanthella, commonly known as little chrysantha, is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub with cylinder-shaped leaves and small groups of lemon-yellow to gold-coloured flowers which fade to orange, red or brown.

Verticordia coronata is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small shrub with leaves whose shape depends on their position on the plant, and groups of yellow flowers near the ends of the branches.

Verticordia dasystylis is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small shrub, with many stems at its base, oblong leaves and scented, fluffy, yellow and white flowers. There are three subspecies, each of which has a priority conservation status.

<i>Verticordia dichroma</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia dichroma is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a much-branched shrub with rounded leaves and spikes of scented, deep red and golden-coloured flowers.

Verticordia endlicheriana var. compacta is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, usually compact shrub with sweetly-perfumed, golden-yellow flowers which fade through reddish to almost black as they age.

<i>Verticordia etheliana</i> Species of shrub

Verticordia etheliana is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub with one highly branched main stem, egg-shaped to almost round leaves and spike-like groups of bright red flowers with greenish-cream centres.

<i>Verticordia grandiflora</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia grandiflora, commonly known as claw featherflower, clawed featherflower or horned featherflower, is a flowering plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, rigid shrub with many short side-branches, mostly linear leaves and heads of yellow flowers which soon age to reddish but which are among the largest in the genus. It is similar in appearance to several other species of verticordias with which it is often confused.

Verticordia interioris is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an openly branched shrub with small, linear leaves and rounded groups of pale to dark pink flowers in early spring.

<i>Verticordia laciniata</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia laciniata is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an openly branched shrub with linear, slightly hairy leaves and heads of scented, bright yellow flowers which turn red then bronze-coloured as they age.

<i>Verticordia nobilis</i> Species of flowering plant

Verticordia nobilis, commonly known as northern grandiflora, is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an openly branched shrub with linear leaves and groups of scented, yellow flowers which turn deep red as they age.

Verticordia × eurardyensis, commonly known as Eurardy magenta, is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to a small area in the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub similar to both Verticordia dichroma and Verticordia spicata which grow in the same area and is thought to be a stable hybrid between those two species. It has mostly egg-shaped leaves and spike-like groups of dark magenta-coloured flowers which fade to straw-coloured, in late spring and early summer.

Verticordia sect. Jugata is one of seven sections in the subgenus Chrysoma. It includes seven species of plants in the genus Verticordia. Plants in this section are mostly bushy shrubs to 1.0 m (3 ft) tall with bright yellow flowers which in some species turn red as they age. They have sepals with fringed lobes, petals which have lobes arranged like the fingers of a hand and bracteoles which are joined together and remain attached to the flower after it opens. When Alex George reviewed the genus in 1991, he described the section and gave it the name Jugata. The name Jugata is from the Latin word jugis meaning "yoked together" referring to the arrangement of the bracteoles in these species.

References

  1. 1 2 "Verticordia galeata". APNI. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Elizabeth A. (Berndt) George; Margaret Pieroni (illustrator) (2002). Verticordia: the turner of hearts (1st ed.). Crawley, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. pp. 138–140. ISBN   1-876268-46-8.
  3. 1 2 George, Alex (1991). "New taxa, combinations and typifications in Verticordia (Myrtaceae : Chamelaucieae)". Nuytsia. 7 (3): 231–394.
  4. Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles. "galeatus". A Latin Dictionary. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
  5. "Verticordia galeata". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  6. Paczkowska, Grazyna; Chapman, Alex R. (2000). The Western Australian flora : a descriptive catalogue. Perth: Wildflower Society of Western Australia. p. 407. ISBN   0646402439.
  7. "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 9 June 2016.