Maireana melanocarpa
| Maireana melanocarpa | |
|---|---|
| |
| Near Farina, South Australia | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Amaranthaceae |
| Genus: | Maireana |
| Species: | M. melanocarpa
|
| Binomial name | |
| Maireana melanocarpa | |
Maireana melanocarpa, commonly known as black-fruit bluebush,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae and is endemic to South Australia. It is a multi-branched shrub or subshrub with woolly branches, more or less terete woolly leaves, flowers arranged singly and a dark brown to black fruiting perianth with a horizontal wing with dark brown veins.
Description
Maireana melanocarpa is a multi-branched shrub or subshrub that typically grows to a height of up to about 50 cm (20 in) abd has woolly branches. The leaves are arranged alternately, semiterete, 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in) long, about 1 mm (0.039 in) wide and woolly. The flowers are arranged singly and the fruiting perianth is dark brown to black at maturity, with a shortly hemispherical tube about 2 mm (0.079 in) long and 1 mm (0.039 in) high, rigid and ribbed. The wing is horizontal, up to 6 mm (0.24 in) wide with dark brown veins with a radial slit.[2][3][4]
Taxonomy
Maireana melanocarpa was first formally described in 1975 by Paul Wilson in the journal Nuytsia from specimens collected on Mount Lyndhurst in 1955.[5] The specific epithet (melanocarpa) means 'black-fruited'.[6]
Distribution and habitat
Black-fruit bluebush grows in on sandy rises around salt lakes between Beltana and Lake Watherstone near Leigh Creek, west of the north Flinders Range.[2][4]
References
- ^ "Maireana melanocarpa". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ a b c "Maireana melanocarpa". Seeds of South Australia. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ Wilson, Paul G. (1975). "A Taxonomic Revision of the genus Maireana (Chenopodiaceae)". Nuytsia. 2 (1): 52–53. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ a b Wilson, Paul G. "Maireana melanocarpa". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ "Maireana melanocarpa". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ George, Alex S.; Sharr, Francis A. (2023). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings - A Glossary (fifth ed.). Kardinya: Four Gables Press. p. 258. ISBN 9780645629538.