Verticordia serotina

Verticordia serotina is a flowering plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the north-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub with egg-shaped leaves and bright pink flowers with long, curved styles in spring.

Verticordia serotina

Priority Two — Poorly Known Taxa (DEC)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Verticordia
Subgenus: Verticordia subg. Eperephes
Section: Verticordia sect. Pennuligera
Species:
V. serotina
Binomial name
Verticordia serotina

Description

Verticordia serotina is a shrub with a single main branch and many side-branches and which usually grows to a height of 30–70 cm (10–30 in). The leaves are elliptic, egg-shaped or almost round and 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) long.[2]

The flowers are scented and arranged in spike-like groups near the ends of the branches, each flower on a spreading stalk 1–2 mm (0.04–0.08 in) long. The floral cup is top-shaped, 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long, rough, glabrous and has curved green appendages. The sepals are 8–9 mm (0.31–0.35 in) long, spreading, deep pink with 12 or 13 feathery lobes. The petals are a similar colour to the petals, 6–7 mm (0.2–0.3 in) long, with pointed lobes around its edge. The style is 8 mm (0.3 in) long, curved and hairy on one side. Flowering time is from August to September, sometimes later.[2]

Taxonomy and naming

Verticordia serotina was first formally described by Alex George in 1991 from a specimen he collected near Exmouth and the description was published in Nuytsia.[1][3] The specific epithet (serotina) is a Latin words meaning "happening late"[4] referring to the later flowering of this species compared to the closely related V. forrestii.[2]

George placed this species in subgenus Eperephes, section Pennuligera along with V. comosa, V. chrysostachys, V. lepidophylla, V. aereiflora, V. dichroma, V. x eurardyensis, V. muelleriana, V. argentea, V. albida, V. fragrans, V. venusta, V. forrestii, V. oculata, V. etheliana and V. grandis.[3]

Distribution and habitat

This verticordia usually grows in deep sand in heath and shrubland. It occurs in the Cape Range National Park and nearby stations[2] in the Carnarvon biogeographic region.[5]

Conservation

Verticordia serotina is classified as "Priority Two" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife,[5] meaning that it is poorly known and known from only one or a few locations.[6]

Use in horticulture

Verticordia serotina has only been successfully cultivated in Kings Park Botanic Garden. It has been propagated from cuttings and by grafting onto Chamelaucium uncinatum rootstock.[2]

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References
  1. "Verticordia serotina". APNI. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  2. Elizabeth A. (Berndt) George; Margaret Pieroni (illustrator) (2002). Verticordia: the turner of hearts (1st ed.). Crawley, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. pp. 394–395. ISBN 1-876268-46-8.
  3. George, Alex (1991). "New taxa, combinations and typifications in Verticordia (Myrtaceae : Chamelaucieae)". Nuytsia. 7 (3): 231–394.
  4. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 73.
  5. "Verticordia serotina". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
  6. "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
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