Marianthus bignoniaceus explained

Marianthus bignoniaceus, commonly known as orange bell-creeper,[1] is a species of flowering plant in the family Pittosporaceae and is endemic to Victoria. It is a slender climber with egg-shaped or narrowly egg-shaped leaves and green and orange or salmon-pink flowers arranged singly or in pairs.

Description

Marianthus bignoniaceus is a slender twiner with reddish brown stems that are silky-hairy at first, but become glabrous as they age. Its adult leaves are egg-shaped or narrowly egg-shaped, long and wide on a short petiole. Both surfaces of the leaves have scattered, soft hairs. The flowers are borne singly or in pairs on a slender, pendent pedicel long, the sepals lance-shaped and joined at the base, long and covered with shaggy hairs. The five petals are long joined at the base to form a bell-shaped, green and orange or salmon-pink tube, the lobes long. Flowering mainly occurs from September to January, but flowers are often present all year.[2] [3]

Taxonomy

Marianthus bignoniaceus was first formally described in 1854 by Ferdinand von Mueller in Transactions of the Philosophical Society of Victoria.[4] [5] The specific epithet (bignoniaceus) means "two colours".[6]

Distribution and habitat

This climber grows in moist forest and dense scrubs near streams, sometimes between rocks in higher places and is found in the Grampians National Park and nearby Black Range in Victoria.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Marianthus bignoniaceus . Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment: Canberra . 14 June 2023.
  2. Web site: Walsh . Neville G. . Albrecht . David E. . Stajsic . Val . Marianthus bignoniaceus . Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria . 14 June 2023.
  3. Web site: Billardiera bignoniacea . State Herbarium of South Australia . 14 June 2023.
  4. Web site: Marianthus bignoniaceus. APNI . 14 June 2023.
  5. von Mueller . Ferdinand . Definitions of rare or hitherto undescribed Australian plants, chiefly collected within the boundaries of the colony of Victoria. . Transactions of the Philosophical Society of Victoria . 1854 . 1 . 6–7 . 14 June 2023.
  6. Book: Sharr . Francis Aubi . George . Alex . Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings . 2019 . Four Gables Press . Kardinya, WA . 9780958034180 . 146 . 3rd.