Eremophila glutinosa, commonly known as sticky emu bush, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect, densely foliaged shrub with branches and leaves sticky and shiny due to the presence of resin. It has hairy sepals and lilac-coloured flowers.
| Sticky emu bush | |
|---|---|
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| Eremophila glutinosa leaves and flowers | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Scrophulariaceae |
| Genus: | Eremophila |
| Species: | E. glutinosa
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| Binomial name | |
| Eremophila glutinosa | |
Description
editEremophila glutinosa is an erect shrub growing to a height of between 0.4 and 3 metres (1 and 10 ft) with branches that are densely covered with glandular hairs that are often obscured by a thick layer of resin. The leaves are mostly 8–20 mm (0.3–0.8 in) long, 0.5–1.5 mm (0.02–0.06 in) wide, densely clustered near the ends of the branches, linear in shape, channelled on the lower surface and covered with resin.[2][3]
The flowers are borne singly in leaf axils on a sticky, hairy stalk, usually 1.5–6.5 mm (0.06–0.3 in) long. There are 5 overlapping, green, lance-shaped to egg-shaped sepals which are mostly 6–10.5 mm (0.2–0.4 in) long and hairy on both the inner and outer surfaces. The petals are 10–25 mm (0.4–1 in) long and joined at their lower end to form a tube. The tube is a shade of lilac with dark spots inside the tube and on part of the lobes. The outside of the tube is sparsely hairy, the inside of the lobes glabrous and the inside of the tube is densely woolly. The 4 stamens are fully enclosed in the tube. Flowering occurs from June to October and is followed by fruits which are dry, woody, hairy and 4–6 millimetres (0.16–0.24 in) long.[2][3]
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Taxonomy and naming
editThe species was first formally described by Robert Chinnock in 1979 and the description was published in Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Garden.[4][5] The specific epithet (glutinosa) is a Latin word meaning "sticky" or "viscous",[6] referring to the sticky leaves of this species.[2]
Distribution and habitat
editEremophila glutinosa usually grows on rocky hills, on granite outcrops or along temporary watercourses in clay or sandy soils between Laverton and Mount Augustus[3] in the Avon Wheatbelt, Gascoyne, Murchison and Yalgoo biogeographic regions.[7][8]
Conservation status
editSticky emu bush is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.[7]
Use in horticulture
editThis eremophila is not well known in cultivation and has generally only been grown by propagating onto Myoporum rootstock. It grows in full sun or partial shade but needs protection from frosts.[9]
References
edit- ^ "Eremophila glutinosa". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
- ^ a b c Chinnock, R.J. (Bob) (2007). Eremophila and allied genera : a monograph of the plant family Myoporaceae (1st ed.). Dural, NSW: Rosenberg. pp. 377–379. ISBN 9781877058165.
- ^ a b c Brown, Andrew; Buirchell, Bevan (2011). A field guide to the eremophilas of Western Australia (1st ed.). Hamilton Hill, W.A.: Simon Nevill Publications. p. 138. ISBN 9780980348156.
- ^ "Eremophila glutinosa". APNI. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
- ^ Chinnock, Robert J. (2 April 1979). "Ten new species of Eremophila (Myoporaceae) from Central and Western Australia" (PDF). Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Garden. 1 (4): 240–242. JSTOR 23872160. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
- ^ Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 370.
- ^ a b "Eremophila glutinosa". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ Paczkowska, Grazyna; Chapman, Alex R. (2000). The Western Australian flora : a descriptive catalogue. Perth: Wildflower Society of Western Australia. p. 336. ISBN 0646402439.
- ^ Boschen, Norma; Goods, Maree; Wait, Russell (2008). Australia's eremophilas : changing gardens for a changing climate. Melbourne: Bloomings Books. p. 106. ISBN 9781876473655.