Cryptandra magniflora is a species of flowering plant in the family Rhamnaceae and is endemic to Victoria (Australia). It is a shrub with cylindrical leaves, and clusters of white, tube-shaped flowers.

Cryptandra magniflora
In the Scotia Sanctuary
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Rhamnaceae
Genus: Cryptandra
Species:
C. magniflora
Binomial name
Cryptandra magniflora
Synonyms[1]
  • Cryptandra propinqua var. grandiflora Benth.
  • Cryptandra propinqua auct. non A.Cunn. ex Fenzl

Description edit

Cryptandra magniflora is usually a twiggy, widely branched shrub that typically grows to a height of up to about 1 m (3 ft 3 in), its branches usually not spiny. The leaves are cylindrical, mostly 1.5–5 mm (0.059–0.197 in) long, 0.5–1.0 mm (0.020–0.039 in) wide and sessile or on a short petiole, and grooved on the lower side. There are triangular to egg-shaped stipules 1.2–2.0 mm (0.047–0.079 in) long at the base of the petioles. The upper surface is mostly glabrous, the lower surface hairy. The flowers are borne in clusters of up to 10 in leaf axils with dark brown to black, egg-shaped to elliptic bracts 1.6–4 mm (0.063–0.157 in) long at the base. The floral tube is white, 3.5–6 mm (0.14–0.24 in) long, the sepals 1.8–3.5 mm (0.071–0.138 in) long and the petals 0.9–1.5 mm (0.035–0.059 in) long.[2][3]

Taxonomy and naming edit

Cryptandra magniflora was first formally described in 1862 by Ferdinand von Mueller in Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae from specimens collected near the junction of the Murray and Darling Rivers.[4][5] The specific epithet (magniflora) means "large-flowered".[6]

Distribution and habitat edit

This cryptandra mainly grows in mallee, north of Ouyen in north-west Victoria.[2]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Cryptandra magniflora". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  2. ^ a b Walsh, Neville. "Cryptandra magniflora ". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  3. ^ Kellermann, Jurgen; Udovicic, Frank (1862). "A revision of the Cryptandra propinqua complex (Rhamnaceae: Pomaderreae)". Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales. 128: 94–97. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  4. ^ "Cryptandra magniflora". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  5. ^ von Mueller, Ferdinand (1862). Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae. Vol. 3. Melbourne: Victorian Government Printer. pp. 65–66. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  6. ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 247. ISBN 9780958034180.