Grevillea pterosperma, commonly known as desert grevillea or desert spider-flower,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to continental Australia. It is an erect, rounded shrub with linear leaves, sometimes divided with up to six linear lobes, and cylindrical clusters of greyish white and creamy white flowers with a cream-coloured to pale yellow style.
| Grevillea pterosperma | |
|---|---|
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| In Kings Park | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Proteales |
| Family: | Proteaceae |
| Genus: | Grevillea |
| Species: | G. pterosperma
|
| Binomial name | |
| Grevillea pterosperma | |
Description
editGrevillea pterosperma is an erect, rounded shrub that typically grows to a height of 1.5–4 m (4 ft 11 in – 13 ft 1 in). Its leaves are pointed upwards, more or less linear, 60–180 mm (2.4–7.1 in) long and 0.8–2 mm (0.031–0.079 in) wide, sometimes divided with up to 6 linear lobes 1.0–1.5 mm (0.039–0.059 in) wide. The upper surface has 3 to 5 longitudinal grooves, and the edges are rolled under, obscuring the lower surface. The flowers are arranged in dense, cylindrical clusters 50–160 mm (2.0–6.3 in) long, the flowers at the end of the clusters usually opening first. The flowers are greyish white and woolly- to silky-hairy on the outside, creamy-white and more or less glabrous inside, the style cream-coloured to pale yellow and the pistil 12–21 mm (0.47–0.83 in) long. Flowering occurs from June to January and the fruit is a hairy follicle 15–20 mm (0.59–0.79 in) long.[2][3][4][5][6]
Taxonomy
editGrevillea pterosperma was first formally described in 1854 by Victorian Government Botanist Ferdinand von Mueller, in Transactions of the Philosophical Society of Victoria, based on plants observed "[I]n the Mallee scrub on sandhills towards the junction of the Murray and Murrumbidgee".[7][8] The specific epithet (pterosperma) means "wing-seeded".[9]
Distribution and habitat
editDesert grevillea grows on and between sand dunes and on sandplains and in shrublands, woodlands and mallee in mostly inland areas of the Northern Territory and all mainland states, except Queensland.
References
edit- ^ "Grevillea pterosperma". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Grevillea pterosperma". State Herbarium of South Australia. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ "Grevillea pterosperma". Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment: Canberra. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ "Grevillea pterosperma". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ Makinson, Robert O. "Grevillea pterosperma". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ Makinson, Robert O. "Grevillea pterosperma". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ "Grevillea pterosperma". APNI. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ von Mueller, Ferdinand (1854). "Definitions of rare or hitherto undescribed Australian plants, chiefly collected within the boundaries of the colony of Victoria". Transactions of the Philosophical Society of Victoria. 1: 22–23. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 286. ISBN 9780958034180.