Cryptandra apetala explained

Cryptandra apetala is a species of flowering plant in the family Rhamnaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a shrub with tufted, linear to lance-shaped leaves, and urn-shaped white to creamy-white and pink flowers arranged on short side shoots.

Description

Cryptandra apetala is a woody shrub that typically grows to a height of up to . The leaves are arranged in tufts, linear to lance-shaped with the edges rolled under, so that the leaves appear cylindrical. The flowers are white to creamy-white and pink, arranged in clusters of 2 to 8 on short side shoots. The bracts are brown and shorter than the sepals lobes. The sepals are about long and joined at the base to form an urn-shaped tube, the tube and sepals lobes densely covered with soft hairs. There are no petals but the stamens have relatively large anthers. Flowering occurs from August to October.[1] [2]

Taxonomy

Cryptandra apetala was first formally described in 1909 by Alfred James Ewart and Jean White-Haney in the Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria from specimens collected near Cowcowing by Max Koch.[3] The specific epithet (apetala) means "without petals".[4]

In 1995, Barbara Lynette Rye described two varieties of C. apetala in the journal Nuytsia, and the names are accepted by the Australian Plant Census:

Distribution and habitat

This cryptandra grows on sandy soil in the Avon Wheatbelt, Coolgardie, Geraldton Sandplains, Mallee and Yalgoo bioregions of south-western Western Australia.

Conservation status

Both varieties of C. apetala are listed as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.

Notes and References

  1. Ewart . Alfred J. . White-Haney . Jean . Contributions to the Flora of Australia No. 12. . Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria . 1909 . 22 . 1 . 93 . 25 August 2022.
  2. Rye . Barbara L. . New and priority taxa in the genera Cryptandra and Stenanthemum (Rhamnaceae) of Western Australia. . Nuytsia . 1995 . 10 . 2 . 256–259 . 25 August 2022.
  3. Web site: Cryptandra apetala. APNI. 24 August 2022.
  4. Book: Sharr . Francis Aubi . George . Alex . Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings . 2019 . Four Gables Press . Kardinya, WA . 9780958034180 . 3rd. 134.
  5. Web site: Cryptandra apetala var. anomala . Australian Plant Census . 25 August 2022.
  6. Web site: Cryptandra apetala var. apetala . Australian Plant Census . 25 August 2022.