Melaleuca xerophila
| Melaleuca xerophila | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Myrtales |
| Family: | Myrtaceae |
| Genus: | Melaleuca |
| Species: | M. xerophila |
| Binomial name | |
| Melaleuca xerophila Barlow | |
Melaleuca xerophila is a shrub or small tree in the myrtle family Myrtaceae and is native to arid parts of South Australia and Western Australia.
Description
Melaleuca xerophila is large shrub or small spreading tree which grows to a height of 3–6 metres (10–20 ft) and has fibrous or papery bark. The leaves are alternately or spirally arranged, narrow elliptic in shape, 1.8–5.2 millimetres (0.07–0.2 in) long and 0.9–1.5 millimetres (0.04–0.06 in) wide.
The flowers are arranged in heads near the ends of the branches, each head usually consisting of one to nine individual flowers. The flowers appear in October and November and are bright yellow, pale lemon-yellow or whitish, turning pink with age. The stamens are arranged in bundles of five around the flower, with 15 to 22 stamens in each bundle. The base of the flower is 1.6–2.2 millimetres (0.06–0.09 in) long.
The woody capsules are 2.5–3.5 millimetres (0.1–0.1 in) long and wide, are cup-shaped or barrel-shaped and occur singly or in clusters. The shoot rarely grows beyond the flowers.[1][2]
Taxonomy and naming
Melaleuca xerophila was first described in 1988 by Bryan Barlow in Australian Systematic Botany.[3] The specific epithet (xerophila) is from the Latin xerophile meaning "dry-loving".[4]
Distribution and habitat
Melaleuca xerophila occurs in arid locations in central South Australia and from the Roy Hill district south to the Leonora - Laverton district in Western Australia. It grows in usually in depressions near salt lakes. It grows in calcareous soils.[5][2]
Uses
Essential oils
This leaf oil of this species is mostly monoterpenes but the yield is low.
Horticulture
This species may have use in land rehabilitation in very dry climates.[2]
External sources
- Barlow, BA; Cowley, KJ (1988). "Contributions to a revision of Melaleuca (Myrtaceae): 4–6". Australian Systematic Botany 1 (2): 122–123. doi:10.1071/SB9880095.
References
- ↑ Holliday, Ivan (2004). Melaleucas : a field and garden guide (2nd ed. ed.). Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: Reed New Holland Publishers. pp. 314–315. ISBN 1876334983.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Brophy, Joseph J.; Craven, Lyndley A.; Doran, John C. (2013). Melaleucas : their botany, essential oils and uses. Canberra: Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research. ISBN 9781922137517.
- ↑ "Melaleuca xerophila". APNI. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- ↑ "xerophila". Wiktionary. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- ↑ "Melaleuca xerophila". FloraBase. Department of Environment and Conservation, Government of Western Australia.