Conospermum eatoniae, commonly known as blue lace,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a spreading shrub with egg-shaped leaves only present on young plants, and panicles of glabrous blue, tube-shaped flowers with pale green bracteoles.
| Conospermum eatoniae | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Proteales |
| Family: | Proteaceae |
| Genus: | Conospermum |
| Species: | C. eatoniae
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| Binomial name | |
| Conospermum eatoniae | |
Description
editConospermum eatoniae is a spreading, much-branched shrub that typically grows up to 0.3–0.75 m (1 ft 0 in – 2 ft 6 in) tall and 1 m (3 ft 3 in) wide. Egg-shaped to oblong leaves are only present at the base of young plants. The flowers are arranged in panicles with secondary dichotomous branching, ending in a head of 2 to 10 flowers. The bracteoles are more or less round, 1.8–2.8 mm (0.071–0.110 in) long, 2.5–3.8 mm (0.098–0.150 in) wide, and pale green. The perianth is blue, forming a tube 1.5–4 mm (0.059–0.157 in) long. The upper lip is egg-shaped, 3.5–5 mm (0.14–0.20 in) long and 1.0–1.7 mm (0.039–0.067 in) wide, the lower lip joined for 1.3–2.5 mm (0.051–0.098 in) long with lobes 1.5–2.0 mm (0.059–0.079 in) long. Flowering occurs from August to October, and the fruit is a nut about 2 mm (0.079 in) long and 1.8 mm (0.071 in) wide and with velvety orange hairs.[3][4]
Taxonomy
editConospermum eatoniae was first formally described in 1904 by the botanist Ernst Georg Pritzel in Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie, from specimens collected by Alice Eaton near Tammin.[5][6] The specific epithet (eatoniae) honours the collector of the type specimen.[7]
Distribution and habitat
editBlue lace grows in sandy soils between Coorow, Goomalling and Tammin in the Avon Wheatbelt and Geraldton Sandplains bioregions in the south-west of Western Australia.[3][4]
Conservation status
editThis species of Conospermum is listed as Priority Three by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife,[3] meaning that it is poorly known, and known from only a few locations but is not under imminent threat.[8]
References
edit- ^ "Conospermum eatoniae". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
- ^ "Smokebush for cutflower production". Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. 9 December 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
- ^ a b c "Conospermum eatoniae". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ a b Bennett, Edith M. "Conospermum eatiniae". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
- ^ "Conospermum eatoniae". APNI. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
- ^ Pritzel, Ernst Georg (1904). Engler, Adolf (ed.). "Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae occidentalis. Beitrage zur Kenntnis der Pflanzen Westaustraliens, ihrer Verbreitung und ihrer Lebensverhaltnisse". Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie. 35 (1): 141–142. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
- ^ George, Alex; Sharr, Francis (2021). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (4th ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 189. ISBN 9780958034180.
- ^ "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 8 May 2024.