Prostanthera nivea

Prostanthera nivea, commonly known as snowy mintbush, is a shrub that is native to Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria in Australia.[2] It grows to between 1 and 4 metres high and is found in sclerophyll forest, woodland and heath. Its flowers appear in spring in the leaf axils, tending to be clustered towards the ends of branches.[2] They are about 14 to 18 mm long and white or mauve, with a yellow-spotted throat.[2] The leaves are long and narrow, 10 to 50 mm long and 0.5 to 2 mm wide.[2]

Prostanthera nivea
Prostanthera nivea var. nivea at Kooyoora State Park, Victoria
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Prostanthera
Species:
P. nivea
Binomial name
Prostanthera nivea

The species was first formally described by botanist Alan Cunningham in 1834 in Labiatarum Genera et Species.[1]

Two varieties are recognised:[1]

  • Prostanthera nivea var. induta Benth.
  • Prostanthera nivea A.Cunn. ex Benth. var. nivea

In Victoria, areas where the species occurs include the You Yangs, the ranges around Bacchus Marsh, and Mount Korong and Mount Hope.[3]

References
  1. "Prostanthera nivea". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government, Canberra. Retrieved 13 September 2008.
  2. "Prostanthera nivea". PlantNET - New South Wales Flora Online. Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust, Sydney Australia. Retrieved 14 September 2009.
  3. George Bentham (1870). Flora australiensis: a description of the plants of the Australian territory. L. Reeve and Company. pp. 103–. Retrieved 22 April 2012.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.