Xanthosia ciliata

Xanthosia ciliata
Near Cataby
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Apiales
Family: Apiaceae
Genus: Xanthosia
Species:
X. ciliata
Binomial name
Xanthosia ciliata

Xanthosia ciliata is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a low spreading shrub with linear leaves and yellowish-green to cream-coloured or white flowers.

Description

Xanthosia ciliata is a low, spreading shrub that typically grows to a height of 5–25 cm (2.0–9.8 in), its leaves linear to wedge-shaped. The inflorescence is arranged in leaf axils or on the ends of branches and is usually a small, compound umbel with four short rays. Each partial umbel is subtended by a leaf-like, softly-hairy involucral bract less than 2 mm (0.079 in) long. The sepals are tapering heart-shaped and the petals are yellowish-green to cream-coloured or white. Flowering occurs from October to December or January.[2][3]

Taxonomy and naming

Xanthosia ciliata was first formally described in 1848 by William Jackson Hooker in Icones Plantarum from specimens collected by James Drummond near the Swan River.[4][5] The specific epithet (ciliata) means "fringed with fine hairs".[6]

Distribution and habitat

Xanthosia ciliata grows in lateritic soils, sand or clay in the Avon Wheatbelt, Esperance Plains, Geraldton Sandplains, Jarrah Forest and Swan Coastal Plain bioregions of south-western Western Australia and is listed as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.[3]

References

  1. ^ "Xanthosia ciliata". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  2. ^ Bentham, George (1867). Flora Australiensis. Vol. 3. London: Lovell Reeve & Co. p. 361. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Xanthosia ciliate". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  4. ^ "Xanthosia ciliata". APNI. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  5. ^ Hooker, William J. (1848). Icones Plantarum. Vol. 8. London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green and Longman. p. 726. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  6. ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 163. ISBN 9780958034180.