Scaevola albida explained

Scaevola albida, commonly known as pale fan-flower[1] or small-fruit fan-flower,[2] is a flowering plant in the family Goodeniaceae. It is a spreading perennial herb with pale blue or white fan-shaped flowers and obovate leaves. It grows in Queensland through eastern New South Wales and coastal areas of Victoria and Tasmania.

Description

Scaevola albida is a mat forming ground cover growing up to high and wide. The leaves are elliptic to egg-shaped, wavy, bright green, semi-succulent and slightly hairy, long, wide, margins smooth or toothed, and sessile. The flowers are borne in upper leaf axils on stems to long, five petaled, corolla white, pale blue or lilac, long with white, more or less flattened hairs on the outer surface. Flowering occurs mostly from October to January and the fruit urn-like shaped, usually one-seeded, papery and long.[1] [2] [3]

Taxonomy and naming

Scaevola albida was first formally described in 1917 and the description was published in The Botanical Exchange Club and Society of the British Isles.[4] [5] The specific epithet (albida) means "white".[6]

Distribution and habitat

Pale fan-flower grows near coastal scrubland, grassy headlands and ranges in New South Wales, Tasmania, South Australia, Victoria and Queensland.[1]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Carolin . R.C . Scaevola albida . PlantNET-NSW flora online . Royal Botanic Garden Sydney . 5 February 2022.
  2. Web site: Scaevola albida . VICFLORA-flora of Victoria . Royal Botanic Garden Victoria . 5 February 2022.
  3. Web site: The Native Plants of Adelaide. Department for Environment and Heritage. 21 March 2011.
  4. Web site: Scaevola albida . Australian Plant Name Index . 6 February 2022.
  5. Druce . George . Scaevola albida . The Botanical Exchange Club and Society of the British Isles . 1916 . 2 . 644 . 6 February 2022.
  6. Book: Francis Aubie Sharr . Francis Aubie Sharr . Western Australian Plant Names and their Meanings . 2019 . Four Gables Press . Kardinya, Western Australia . 9780958034180 . 130.