Ptilotus parvifolius
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| Ptilotus parvifolius | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Amaranthaceae |
| Genus: | Ptilotus |
| Species: | P. parvifolius |
| Binomial name | |
| Ptilotus parvifolius | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Ptilotus parvifolius, commonly known as shrubby fox-tail,[2] is a species of flowering plant of the family Amaranthaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a rounded, widely branched, spiny, glabrous shrub, with narrowly egg-shaped leaves, sometimes with the narrower end towards the base, and spikes of pinkish or pinkish-purple flowers.
Ptilotus parvifolius is an intricately and widely branched, spiny shrub that typically grows to a height of 30 cm (12 in) and has glabrous, pale brown, striated stems. The leaves are more or less sessile, egg-shaped, sometimes with the narrower end towards the base, 15–55 mm (0.59–2.17 in) long, 0.5–2 mm (0.020–0.079 in) wide, with a few scattered hairs on the lower surface. The flowers are borne in short spikes with ten to twenty flowers on a rachis usually up to 20 mm (0.79 in) long. There are leathery, golden brown bracts 3.0–3.5 mm (0.12–0.14 in) long and bracteoles 4–5.3 mm (0.16–0.21 in) long at the base of the flowers. The perianth is 11–12 mm (0.43–0.47 in) long and pink to pinkish-purple, the two outer tepals 1 mm (0.039 in) longer than the inner tepals. The stamens are 4.5–6.5 mm (0.18–0.26 in) long and there are three hairy staminodes, the ovary is mostly glabrous and the style is eccentric and straight, 6–7 mm (0.24–0.28 in) long.[2][3]