Prostanthera ringens
Species of flowering plant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Prostanthera ringens, commonly known as gaping mint-bush,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a bushy shrub with four-sided, hairy, densely glandular branches, oblong or egg-shaped leaves and pale blue to greenish or yellow flowers arranged singly in leaf axils.
| Gaping mint-bush | |
|---|---|
| |
| Prostanthera ringens near Goondiwindi | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Lamiaceae |
| Genus: | Prostanthera |
| Species: | P. ringens |
| Binomial name | |
| Prostanthera ringens | |
 | |
| Occurrence data from AVH | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Description
Prostanthera ringens is a bushy shrub that typically grows to a height of 2 m (6 ft 7 in) with four-sided, hairy, densely glandular branches. The leaves are egg-shaped to oblong, 6–15 mm (0.24–0.59 in) long and 2–6 mm (0.079–0.236 in) wide on a petiole up to 3 mm (0.12 in) long. The flowers are arranged singly in leaf axils with bracteoles about 1 mm (0.039 in) long at the base. The sepals are 6–8 mm (0.24–0.31 in) long forming a tube about 5 mm (0.20 in) long with two lobes about 2 mm (0.079 in) long. The petals are 14–23 mm (0.55–0.91 in) and pale blue to greenish or yellow, forming a tube about 10 mm (0.39 in) long.[2][3]
Taxonomy
Prostanthera ringens was first formally described in 1848 by George Bentham in Thomas Mitchell's Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Australia.[4]
Distribution and habitat
Conservation status
Prostanthera ringens is classified as of "least concern" in Queensland under the Queensland Government Nature Conservation Act 1992.[5]