| Native Cranberry | |
|---|---|
| Nepean Gorge, Australia | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Ericales |
| Family: | Ericaceae |
| Genus: | Lissanthe |
| Species: | L. sapida |
| Binomial name | |
| Lissanthe sapida R.Br. |
|
Lissanthe sapida, sometimes referred as the Native Cranberry is a shrub from the heath family, found near Sydney, Australia. A rare plant, with a ROTAP rating of 3RCa, it grows in dry eucalyptus woodlands and rocky areas, of soils based on sandstone.[1]
Usually around one metre tall, though it may be seen to 2.5 metres high. Leaves are narrow oblong, around 15 to 25 mm long, 2 to 4 mm wide with a sharp point. It flowers from March to September. With attractive white, bell shaped, hanging flowers. The juicy fruit is round, red and hairless with a flat top.
It may be seen in areas such as Bargo, Blackheath, Mountain Lagoon and the Nepean Gorge.[2]
This plant first appeared in the scientific literature in 1810, in the Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae, authored by the prolific Scottish botanist, Robert Brown.