Conospermum distichum
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Conospermum distichum | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Proteales |
| Family: | Proteaceae |
| Genus: | Conospermum |
| Species: | C. distichum |
| Binomial name | |
| Conospermum distichum | |
Conospermum distichum is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub with ascending, thread-like leaves, and spikes of woolly white, tube-shaped flowers with blue bracteoles.
Conospermum distichum is a shrub that typically grows to a height of up to 80 cm (31 in). It has scattered, ascending, glabrous, thread-like leaves 35–85 mm (1.4–3.3 in) long and 0.4–0.75 mm (0.016–0.030 in) wide at the base of the plant. The flowers are arranged in spikes in upper leaf axils on a peduncle 15–70 mm (0.59–2.76 in) long. The bracteoles are blue, egg-shaped, 2.2–3.2 mm (0.087–0.126 in) long, 1.7–2.5 mm (0.067–0.098 in) wide, and hairy at the sides and base. The perianth is white, forming a tube 4.0–7.5 mm (0.16–0.30 in) long. The upper lip is blue, egg-shaped, 1.8–3 mm (0.071–0.118 in) long and 1.0–1.7 mm (0.039–0.067 in) wide, the lower lip joined for 1.5–2.5 mm (0.059–0.098 in) long with lobes 0.4–0.8 mm (0.016–0.031 in) long. Flowering occurs from August to November, and the fruit is a nut 1.8–2.8 mm (0.071–0.110 in) long and 1.6–1.9 mm (0.063–0.075 in) wide and orange-brown, with velvety hairs.[2][3]
Taxonomy
Conospermum densiflorum was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown in Transactions of the Linnean Society of London.[4][5] The specific epithet (distichum) means 'in two rows', referring to the leaves.[6]