Melaleuca lecanantha

Melaleuca lecanantha is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to a small area of south-west Western Australia. It is a shrub with small, rather fleshy leaves and pink to lilac-coloured flowers in early spring. The plant was first described in 1867 but the name given to it was considered illegitimate and it was not until 1998 that it was first formally described.

Melaleuca lecanantha
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Melaleuca
Species:
M. lecanantha
Binomial name
Melaleuca lecanantha
Barlow

Description

Melaleuca lecanantha is an erect shrub, 0.2–2 m (0.7–7 ft) tall with mostly glabrous branchlets and leaves. The leaves are tiny - 3.7–7.5 mm (0.1–0.3 in) long and only 0.5–0.7 mm (0.02–0.03 in) wide, linear, almost circular in cross-section and with almost no stalk.[1][2]

The flowers occur singly (rarely in pairs) along the stem and are pink or lilac-mauve. The stamens are arranged in five bundles around the flowers and there are 19-30 stamens per bundle - an unusually large number for the genus. The base of the flower (the hypanthium) is glabrous and 2.5–3.5 mm (0.098–0.14 in) long. September to October is the main flowering period and the fruit are woody capsules, 5–6 mm (0.20–0.24 in) long.[1][2]

Taxonomy and naming

The species had been described in 1867 by George Bentham in Flora Australiensis as Melaleuca conferta but the name was illegitimate. The new species was described in 1988 by Bryan Barlow in Nuytsia to accommodate the plants known by the illegitimate name.[3][4] According to Barlow, the specific epithet (lecanantha) is from the Greek lecano meaning "dish" and anthos, "flower" referring to the dish-like shape formed by the stamens.[5] Botanist Backer explained this compound, that predates Barlow's description of Melaleuca lecanantha, as being derived from ancient Greek lekanē (λεκάνη), meaning "dish".[6]

Distribution and habitat

Melaleuca lecanantha is confined to the area between Wongan Hills, Southern Cross, Lake King and Nyabing[1] in the Avon Wheatbelt and Mallee biogeographic regions.[7] It grows in grey or yellow sand with gravel and sandy clay.[8]

Conservation status

Melaleuca lecanantha is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife.[8]

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References
  1. Holliday, Ivan (2004). Melaleucas : a field and garden guide (2nd ed.). Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: Reed New Holland Publishers. p. 158. ISBN 1876334983.
  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. p. 220. ISBN 9781922137517.
  3. Barlow, BA; Cowley, KJ (1988). "Contributions to a revision of Melaleuca (Myrtaceae): 4–6". Australian Systematic Botany. 1 (2): 95. doi:10.1071/SB9880095.
  4. "Melaleuca lecanantha". APNI. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  5. Barlow, Bryan A.; Cowley, Kirsten J (1988). "Contributions to a Revision of Melaleuca (Myrtaceae)". Australian Systematic Botany. 1: 114.
  6. Backer, C.A. (1936). Verklarend woordenboek der wetenschappelijke namen van de in Nederland en Nederlandsch-Indië in het wild groeiende en in tuinen en parken gekweekte varens en hoogere planten (Edition Nicoline van der Sijs).
  7. Paczkowska, Grazyna; Chapman, Alex R. (2000). The Western Australian flora : a descriptive catalogue. Perth: Wildflower Society of Western Australia. p. 395. ISBN 0646402439.
  8. "Melaleuca lecanantha". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
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