Babingtonia grandiflora

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Babingtonia grandiflora
Near Cataby
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Babingtonia
Species:
B. grandiflora
Binomial name
Babingtonia grandiflora

Babingtonia grandiflora, commonly known as the large flowered babingtonia,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It is a shrub with erect or arching stems, linear leaves and white or pale pink flowers usually arranged singly in leaf axils, each flower with 11 to 25 stamens.

Description[edit]

Babingtonia grandiflora is a shrub that typically grows to a height of 0.3–1.2 m (1 ft 0 in – 3 ft 11 in) and has erect or arching stems. Its leaves are linear to narrowly egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, 2.5–9 mm (0.098–0.354 in) long and 0.5–1.6 mm (0.020–0.063 in) wide on a petiole 0.2–0.7 mm (0.0079–0.0276 in) long. The flowers are usually arranged singly on a peduncle 3–9 mm (0.12–0.35 in) long, the sepals about 0.2–0.7 mm (0.0079–0.0276 in) long and 1.5–3.3 mm (0.059–0.130 in) wide. The petals are white or pale pink, 4.5–6.5 mm (0.18–0.26 in) long and there are 11–25 stamens in each flower. The ovary has three locules, each with 10 to 15 ovules. Flowering mainly occurs from August to October, and the fruit is a capsule 2.5–3 mm (0.098–0.118 in) long and 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) wide including the flower parts.[3][2]

Taxonomy[edit]

This species was first formally described in 1867 by George Bentham in Flora Australiensis, who gave it the name Baeckea grandiflora, from specimens collected by James Drummond between the Moore and Murchison Rivers.[4][5] In 2015, Barbara Rye transferred the species to Babingtonia as B. grandiflora in the journal Nuytsia.[3][6] The specific epithet (grandiflora) means "large-flowered".[7]

Distribution and habitat[edit]

Babingtonia grandiflora often occurs on rocky hillsides or outcrops from near Northampton to Boonanarring Nature Reserve in the Avon Wheatbelt, Geraldton Sandplains, Jarrah Forest and Swan Coastal Plain bioregions of south-western Western Australia.[3][2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Babingtonia grandiflora". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "Babingtonia grandiflora". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  3. ^ a b c Rye, Barbara L. (2015). "A revision of the south-western Australian genus Babingtonia (Myrtaceae: Chamelaucieae)". Nuytsia. 25: 239–241. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  4. ^ "Babingtonia fascifolia". APNI. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  5. ^ Bentham, George (1867). Flora Australiensis. Vol. 3. London: Lovell Reeve & Co. p. 89. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  6. ^ "Babingtonia grandiflora". APNI. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  7. ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 210. ISBN 9780958034180.