Gnephosis eriocarpa
| Native camomile | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Genus: | Gnephosis |
| Species: | G. eriocarpa
|
| Binomial name | |
| Gnephosis eriocarpa | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Gnephosis eriocarpa, commonly known as native camomile,[2] is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a spreading forb with rounded flower heads and variable leaves.
Description
Gnephosis eriocarpa is an annual, prostrate or spreading forb with woolly stems about 5–23 cm (2.0–9.1 in) long. Leaves are variable, 9–45 mm (0.35–1.77 in) long, 1.5–9 mm (0.059–0.354 in) wide and thickly covered with hairs. The flower heads are rounded to broadly egg-shaped, 5–12 mm (0.20–0.47 in) long and 5.5–13 mm (0.22–0.51 in) in diameter and outer bracts woolly. Flowering may occur any time of the year, often after heavy rainfall and the fruit is an achene about 1.1 mm (0.043 in) long densely covered in hairs.[2][3]
Taxonomy and naming
This species was described in 1863 by Ferdinand von Mueller who gave it the name Skirrhophorus eriocarpus.[4] In 1867 George Bentham changed the name to Gnephosis eriocarpa and the description was published in Flora Australiensis.[5][6] The specific epithet (eriocarpus) means "woolly-fruited".[7]
Distribution and habitat
Native camomile usually grows in mulga bushland on sandy soils and clay pan areas in New South Wales, South Australia and the Northern Territory.[2][3]
References
- ^ a b "Gnephosis eriocarpa". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
- ^ a b c Kutsche, Frank; Lay, Brendan; Croft, Tim; Kellermann, Jurgen (2013). Plants of Outback South Australia. Adelaide: State Herbarium of South Australia. p. 169. ISBN 9781922027603.
- ^ a b Brown, E.A. "Gnephosis eriocarpa". PlantNET-NSW Flora online. Retrieved 19 May 2025.
- ^ "Skirrhophorus eriocarpus". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
- ^ "Gnephosis eriocarpa". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
- ^ Bentham, George (1867). Flora Australiensis (3 ed.). London: Lovell Reeve & Co. p. 570.
- ^ George, A.S; Sharr, F.A (2021). Western Australian Plant Names and their meanings (4th ed.). Kardinya: Four Gables. p. 198. ISBN 9780958034197.