Bossiaea prostrata, commonly known as creeping bossiaea,[1] is a prostrate understory shrub in the pea family, Fabaceae. It is a widespread species with orange-yellow flowers, purple-brown keels and trailing branches.
Bossiaea prostrata is a shrub with a prostrate spreading, scrambling habit to wide. The leaves are dark green on the upper side and paler on the underside, ovate to rounded or oblong, long, wide and have a petiole about long. The leaves are arranged alternately, simple, smooth or with sparse hairs, stipules narrow to egg-shaped, long. The stems are flattened toward the apex and either smooth or with short flattened or spreading hairs. The flowers are single or in pairs, long, have orange-yellow standards, that are pinkish brown on the back, and purple-brown keels. The pedicels long, bracts long. The seed pods are oblong in shape and between long. Flowering occurs between September and November in its native range.It is similar to the species Bossiaea buxifolia, but may be distinguished by its longer leaves, petioles and pedicels and more distant leaf spacing.[1] [2] [3] [4]
Bossiaea prostrata was first formally described in 1812 by botanist Robert Brown and the description was published in Hortus Kewensis.[5] [6] The specific epithet (prostrata) is a Latin word meaning "down flat", "overthrown" or "laid low",[7]
Creeping bossiaea occurs in South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales and Queensland in Australia. It grows in coastal heath, grassland and open-forest on a variety of soils including clay-shale, preferring wetter locations.[1] [8]