Family: Myrtaceae
Plant: A tall shrub up to 2m high with a greyish-brown papery bark.
Flowers: Strongly scented cream to yellow 15mm diameter with numerous stamens. The flowers are borne in a 4cm long terminal spike.
Flowering: October-February.
Fruit: Cup-shaped capsule about 4mm diameter with a small wavy opening and crowded into cylindrical clusters surrounding the stems.
Leaves: Opposite, shiny, decussate, ovate up to 1.5cm long and 4-7mm wide, sharply pointed and with longitudinal veins. The leaves are bright green, opposite and crowded up the stems, are prominently veined and have oil dots.
Habitat: Found in dense thickets in damp places in dry sclerophyll forest and heathland.
Features: Decussate leaves with longitudinal veins. Cream to yellow flowers in fluffy terminal spikes. Woody capsules on stem.
Name:
Melaleuca From Greek melas = black and leucos = white (referring to its black wood and white branches)
squarrosa From Latin = crowded, rigid (referring to its leaves)
|
Type |
Shrub |
|
|
Flowers |
Form |
Cylindrical, Cluster |
|
|
Colour(s) |
Cream, Yellow |
|
|
Petal/Sepal No. |
- |
|
|
Flowering Month |
1, 2, 10, 11, 12 |
|
Fruit |
Type |
Capsule |
|
|
Colour |
Brown |
|
|
Other Features |
Woody, Hard |
|
Leaves |
Arrangement |
Opposite, Crowded |
|
|
Type |
Simple |
|
|
Shape |
Oval |
|
|
Length |
Short |
|
|
Margins |
Entire |
|
|
Attachment |
Unstalked |
|
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Other Features |
Sharp-tip, Tapered-tip, |
|
|
|
Oil dots/Glands |
|
Bark |
Papery/Flaky |
|
|
Habitat |
Dry sclerophyll forest, Heathland |
|