Thryptomene ericaea is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a shrub with narrow elliptic leaves and white flowers with five petals and five stamens.
Thryptomene ericaea is a shrub that typically grows to a height of . Its leaves are narrow elliptic with a pointed tip, about long, wide and sessile. Each flower is on a peduncle long and has a ribbed, more or less cylindrical floral cup. The flowers have five white, egg-shaped sepals and petals, all about long and there are five stamens opposite the sepals. Flowering occurs from September to December.[1]
Thryptomene ericaea was first formally described in 1858 by Ferdinand von Mueller in Fragmenta phytographiae Australiae from specimens collected by "Bannier" on Kangaroo Island.[2] [3] The specific epithet (ericaea) refers to a resemblance of this species to plants in the genus Erica.[4]
This thryptomene occurs in South Australia, on Kangaroo Island and to a lesser extent on the Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas.
A cultivar of T. ericaea known as 'Centenary Starburst' was chosen as South Australia's floral emblem for the Centenary of Federation (1901–2001).[5] This cultivar has commercial potential for the cut flower industry but the species is difficult to propagate. Research on inducing root formation in tissue culture has been conducted.[6]