Styphelia laeta explained

Styphelia laeta, commonly known as five corners,^[1] is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a slender, erect shrub with broadly elliptic or egg-shaped leaves and pale yellowish-green or red flowers arranged singly in leaf axils.

Description

Styphelia laeta is a slender, erect shrub that typically grows to a height of, its branchlets covered with velvety hairs. The leaves are broadly elliptic or egg-shaped, long, wide on a petiole long. The flowers are arranged singly in leaf axils with glabrous bracteoles long. The flowers are pale yellowish-green or red, the sepals long and the petals form a tube long with densely hairy lobes long. The stamen filaments are long. Flowering occurs from February to August and the fruit is long.^{[2] [3]}

Taxonomy

Styphelia laeta was first formally described in 1810 by botanist Robert Brown in his Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae.^{[4] [5]} The specific epithet (laeta) means "cheerful", "pleasant" or "bright".^[6]

In 1992, Jocelyn Powell described two subspecies of S. laeta in the journal Telopea and the names are accepted by the Australian Plant Census:^[7]

• Styphelia laeta R.Br. subsp. laeta^[8] has leaves with a length:breadth ratio of 2.5–6.3:1 and finely toothed edges.
• Styphelia laeta subsp. latifolia (R.Br.) J.M.Powell^[9] has leaves with a length:breadth ratio of 1.9–3.1:1 and finely softly-hairy edges.

Distribution and habitat

Five corners grows in forest or shrubland between Gosford, Sydney and the Blue Mountains and disjunctly near Warialda.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Powell . Jocelyn M. . "Styphelia laeta" . Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney . 4 February 2024.
2. Book: Bentham . George . Flora Australiensis . 1868 . Lovell Reeve & Co. . London . 147 . 5 February 2024.
3. Web site: Styphelia laeta . Australian Native Plants Society (Australia) . 5 February 2024.
4. Web site: Styphelia laeta. APNI. 5 February 2024.
5. Book: Brown . Robert . Prodromus florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van-Diemen, exhibens characteres plantarum . 1810 . London . 537 . 5 February 2024.
6. Book: . Botanical Latin. History, grammar, syntax, terminology and vocabulary . 1992 . Timber Press . Portland, Oregon . 4th. 438.
7. Powell . Jocelyn M. . Robertson . Graham I. . Wiecek . Barbara M. . Scott . James A. . Studies in Australian Epacridaceae: changes to Styphelia. . Telopea . 1992 . 5 . 1 . 222 . 5 February 2024.
8. Web site: Styphelia laeta subsp. laeta. Australian Plant Census. 5 February 2024.
9. Web site: Styphelia laeta subsp. latifolia. Australian Plant Census. 5 February 2024.