Spyridium cinereum
| Spyridium cinereum | |
|---|---|
| |
| In the Australian National Botanic Gardens | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rhamnaceae |
| Genus: | Spyridium |
| Species: | S. cinereum
|
| Binomial name | |
| Spyridium cinereum | |
Spyridium cinereum, commonly known as tiny spiridium,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Rhamnaceae and is endemic to south-eastern continental Australia. It is a low-lying shrub with heart-shaped leaves, the narrower end towards the base, and heads of whitish, shaggy-hairy flowers with brown bracts at the base of the heads.
Description
Spyridium cinereum is a low-lying shrub or subshrub that typically grows to a height of 10–50 cm (3.9–19.7 in). The leaves are heart-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, 4–8 mm (0.16–0.31 in) long and 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) wide with a small point in the centre of the notch. Both surfaces of the leaves are woolly-hairy, especially the upper surface, and the edges of the leaves are rolled under. The heads of flowers are arranged on the ends of branches, each with a leaf and several brown bracts at the base, the head in flattish umbels about 10 mm (0.39 in) in diameter. The sepals are about 1 mm (0.039 in) long, the petals whitish, 2–3 mm (0.079–0.118 in) long and shaggy-hairy on the outside. Flowering occurs from October to January and the fruit is a capsule about 2.5 mm (0.098 in) long.[2][3][4]
Taxonomy
Spyridium cinereum was first formally described in 1957 by Norman Arthur Wakefield in The Victorian Naturalist of specimens he collected near Mallacoota aerodrome.[4][5] The specific epithet (cinereum) means "ash-coloured".[6]
Distribution
Spyridium cinereum grows in coastal heath and low scrub in disjunct populations near Nadgee in the far south-east of New South Wales, far north-eastern Victoria and in the north-east Grampians.[2][3]
References
- ^ "Spyridium cinereum". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- ^ a b c Walsh, Neville G. "Spyridium cinereum". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- ^ a b Harden, Gwen J. "Spyridium cinereum". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- ^ a b Wakefield, Norman A. (1957). "Flora of Victoria: new species and other additions - 11". The Victorian Naturalist. 73 (10): 165–166. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- ^ "Spyridium cinereum". APNI. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
- ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 164. ISBN 9780958034180.