Biology:Calytrix flavescens

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Short description: Species of flowering plant

Calytrix flavescens
Calytrix flavescens - Flickr - Kevin Thiele.jpg
Calytrix flavescens seed head (7159678139).jpg
Seed head of summer starflower
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Calytrix
Species:
C. flavescens
Binomial name
Calytrix flavescens
A.Cunn.
Calytrix flavescens seed

Calytrix flavescens, commonly known as summer starflower, is a species of plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae that is endemic to Western Australia.[1]

Description

The shrub typically grows to a height of 0.3 to 0.8 metres (1 to 3 ft) and a width of 0.3 to 0.5 metres (1 to 2 ft).[2] It usually blooms between October and January producing yellow star-shaped flowers.[1] The plant is perennial and has a short lifespan. The foliage is evergreen with a dense open habit.[3]

Taxonomy

The species was first formally described by the botanist Allan Cunningham in 1834 in the journal Botanical Magazine.[4]

Distribution

Found on sand-plains, gentle slopes and sometimes in swampy areas in the Mid West, Wheatbelt, South West and Great Southern regions of Western Australia where it grows on sandy soils over granite, laterite or sandstone.[1]

Cultivation

It grows from seed[2] but can be propagated from softwood or hardwood cuttings. Grown in pots and gardens as a feature plant, it attracts bees when in flower and flowers can be cut. It is both drought resistant and frost tolerant.[3]

References

Wikidata ☰ Q15396338 entry