Baeckea linifolia

Baeckea linifolia (swamp baeckea,[3] or weeping baeckea[4] is a heathland shrub found in three Australian mainland states: New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria,[4][5] where it is rare.[5] It grows up to 1.5 metre high,[4] (up to 3 metres according to VicFlora).[5] It grows in heath in damp places, often near waterfalls and gullies, along the coast and adjacent ranges.[4][3]

Baeckea linifolia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Baeckea
Species:
B. linifolia
Binomial name
Baeckea linifolia
Synonyms[1]

Baeckea linifolia Rudge f. linifolia
Baeckea linifolia Rudge var. linifolia
 Baeckea trichophylla Sieber ex Spreng.
 Baeckea linifolia var. brevifolia F.Muell. ex Benth.
Baeckea linifolia f. trichophylla (Sieber ex Spreng.) Domin
Baeckea linifolia var. brevifolia Ewart nom. illeg.

Description

Baeckea linifolia is an erect shrub with branches having drooping tips. The leaves are linear and widely spaced, linear (more or less terete) and growing close to the stem. They are 5 to 15 mm long, acute at the end and having a tapering base. The solitary, axillary, flowers are white and up to 5 mm across on pedicels (stems) which are 1.5–2 mm long. The calyx lobes are triangular. The petals are ovate and 1.5 to 2.5 mm long. There are 8 to 15 stamens, none of which is opposite the petals on curved filaments. The flat-topped ovary has two cells. The fruit is cup-like and the seeds are angular.

In Victoria it flowers mainly from December to March. (In the Sydney region, Fairley and Moore have it flowering mainly in January and February.)[3]

In Victoria it is found in low swampy heaths from Cann River eastward and northward.[5]

Victorian plants typically have smaller, more rigid leaves in comparison with plants found in New South Wales and Queensland, and were previously included in Baeckea linifolia var. brevifolia F.Muell. ex Benth.[5]

Taxonomy and naming

Baeckea linifolia was first formally described in 1807 by Edward Rudge and the description was published in Transactions of the Linnean Society of London fom a specimen collected "near Port Jackson".[1][6] The specific epithet (linifolia) is derived from the Latin words linum ("flax") and folium ("leaf"),[7] giving a compound Latin adjective which describes the plant as having leaves like those of a flax plant (long and narrow).[8]

References
  1. "Baeckea linifolia". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  2. Rudge, E. (1807) Description of Seven New Plants from New Holland. Transactions of the Linnean Society of London 8: 297, t. 12. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  3. Fairley, A. & Moore, P. (2010) Field Guide to the Native Plants of the Sydney Region, ISBN 9781741755718 page 276. Allen and Unwin.
  4. Wilson, P.G. (1997) PlantNET: Baeckea linifolia. National Herbarium of New South Wales, Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney, Australia.] Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  5. VicFlora: Baeckea linifolia. Flora of Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Foundation Victoria. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  6. Rudge, Edward (1807). "Seven new species of plants from New Holland". Transactions of the Linnean Society of London. 8: 297. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
  7. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 485,340.
  8. Backer, C.A. (1936). Verklarend woordenboek der wetenschappelijke namen van de in Nederland en Nederlandsch-Indië in het wild groeiende en in tuinen en parken gekweekte varens en hoogere planten (Edition Nicoline van der Sijs).
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.