Leptospermum arachnoides
{{short description|Australian species of plant}}
{{speciesbox
|name = Spidery tea-tree
|image = Leptospermum arachnoides flower cluster (8349236214).jpg
|image_caption = Flowers of Leptospermum arachnoides in the Royal National Park
|genus = Leptospermum
|species = arachnoides
|authority = Gaertn.{{cite web |title=Leptospermum arachnoides |url=https://biodiversity.org.au/nsl/services/apc-format/display/80868|website=Australian Plant Census |accessdate=19 March 2020}}
|synonyms =
- Leptospermum arachnoideum Sm. nom. illeg.
- Leptospermum baccatum Sm.
- Leptospermum baccatum Sm. var. baccatum
- Leptospermum juniperifolium Cav.
- Leptospermum triloculare Vent.
- Melaleuca arachnoidea Raeusch. nom. inval., nom. nud.
|range_map = Leptospermum arachnoidesDistA3.png
|range_map_caption = Occurrence data from AVH
}}
File:Spidery Tea-tree fruit (6602857395).jpg
Leptospermum arachnoides, commonly known as the spidery tea-tree,Les Robinson – Field Guide to the Native Plants of Sydney, {{ISBN|978-0-7318-1211-0}} page 52 is a species of shrub that is endemic to eastern Australia. It has rough bark, crowded linear to lance-shaped leaves with a sharp point on the end, white flowers and hairy fruit.
Description
Leptospermum arachnoides is a slender, spreading shrub that typically grows to {{cvt|1-2|m}} high and {{cvt|1.5|m}} wide and has rough, peeling, flaky bark. The leaves are linear to lance-shaped or elliptical, mostly {{cvt|10-20|mm}} long, {{cvt|1-3|mm}} wide, concave in cross-section, with a sharp point on the end and on a very short but broad petiole. The flowers are borne singly in leaf axils and are {{cvt|8-10|mm}} in diameter with a hairy floral cup about {{cvt|2|mm}} long. The sepals are about {{cvt|2|mm}} long and hairy, the petals about {{cvt|4|mm}} long and white, the stamens are about {{cvt|2|mm}} long. Flowering occurs from November to January and the fruit is a hairy capsule {{cvt|5-8|mm}} in diameter.{{cite web |title=Leptospermum arachnoides |url=http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Leptospermum~arachnoides |publisher=Royal Botanic Garden Sydney |accessdate=19 March 2020}}{{cite web |title=Leptospermum arachnoides |url=https://www.anbg.gov.au/leptospermum/leptospermum-arachnoides.html |publisher=Australian National Botanic Gardens |accessdate=19 March 2020}}{{cite book |last1=Carolin |first1=Roger C. |last2=Tindale |first2=Mary D. |title=Flora of the Sydney region |date=1993 |publisher=Reed |isbn=0730104001 |page=395 |edition=4th}}
Taxonomy and naming
Leptospermum arachnoides was first formally described in 1788 by Joseph Gaertner in his book De Fructibus et Seminibus Plantarum.{{cite web|title=Leptospermum arachnoides|url= https://id.biodiversity.org.au/instance/apni/497009 |publisher=APNI|accessdate=19 March 2020}}{{cite book |last1=Gaertner |first1=Joseph |title=De Fructibus et Seminibus Plantarum (Volume1) |date=1788 |publisher=Sumtibus Auctoris, Typis Academiae Carolinae |location=Stuttgart |page=174 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/114363#page/372/mode/1up |accessdate=19 March 2020}} The specific epithet (‘’arachnoides’’) is derived from Latin, meaning "resembling a spider".
Distribution and habitat
Spidery tea-tree grows in moist heath and sclerophyll forest, usually on shallow soils derived from sandstone and granite. It occurs between south-east Queensland and the Tinderry Range in New South Wales.
References
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{{Taxonbar|from=Q15368856}}
Category:Myrtales of Australia