Exocarpos homalocladus
| Exocarpos homalocladus | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Santalales |
| Family: | Santalaceae |
| Genus: | Exocarpos |
| Species: | E. homalocladus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Exocarpos homalocladus | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Exocarpos homalocladus, commonly known as the grass tree, is a flowering plant in the sandalwood family.[1] The specific epithet comes from the Greek homalos (“flat”) and clados (“cladode”, a leaf-like stem, specialised for photosynthesis), with reference to the structure of the plant.[2]
Description[edit]
It is a shrub or small tree growing to 4 m in height. The flat cladodes are 50–100 mm long, 1–2 mm wide. True leaves only occur on juvenile shoots; they are narrowly lanceolate, 50–80 mm long, 5–15 mm wide. The tiny yellow-green flowers occur in clusters from March to July. The fruits are red and fleshy, 8 mm long and seated on swollen red stalks that turn translucent pink when ripe.[1][3]
Distribution and habitat[edit]
The species is endemic to Australia’s subtropical Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea, where it is fairly common and found from sea level to the summits of the mountains.[1][3]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d Wiecek, BM (2003). "Exocarpos homalocladus". PlantNET: New South Wales Flora Online. Royal Botanic Garden: Sydney. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
- ^ " Exocarpus homalocladus ". Flora of Australia Online: Data derived from Flora of Australia Volume 49 (1994). Australian Biological Resources Study (ABRS). Archived from the original on 2014-03-02. Retrieved 2014-02-21.
- ^ a b Hutton, Ian (1998). The Australian Geographic Book of Lord Howe Island. Sydney: Australian Geographic. p. 144. ISBN 1-876276-27-4.
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