''Bossiaea cinerea'', commonly known as showy bossiaea, is a species of flowering plant in the family

Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenc ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to south-eastern Australia. It is an erect or spreading shrub with trowel-shaped, triangular, egg-shaped or lance-shaped leaves with a sharply-pointed tip and golden yellow and red to purplish-brown flowers.

Description

''Bossiaea cinerea'' is an erect to spreading shrub that typically grows to a height of up to tall and has densely hairy stems. The leaves are more or less

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

, trowel-shaped, triangular, egg-shaped or lance-shaped with a sharply-pointed tip, long and wide with bristly

stipule In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole). Stipules are considered part of the anatomy of the leaf of a typical flowering plant, although in many speci ...

s up to long at the base. The flowers are arranged singly in leaf axils along the branchlets, each flower long and borne on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

long with crowded egg-shaped

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

s and

bracteoles In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

equal to or less than long. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s are long and joined at the base with the upper lobes much broader than the lower ones. The

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

petal is yellow with a red base, a darker colour on the back and up to long. The

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...

are yellow to orange with red or brownish-purple streaks and more than twice as long as the sepals, the wings and

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

are shorter than the standard petal and brownish-purple or red. Flowering occurs from August to November and the fruit is an egg-shaped to oblong pod long.

Taxonomy

''Bossiaea cinerea'' was first formally described in 1812 by Robert Brown in

William Aiton William Aiton (17312 February 1793) was a Scotland, Scottish botanist. Aiton was born near Hamilton, Scotland, Hamilton. Having been regularly trained to the profession of a gardener, he travelled to London in 1754, and became assistant to Phi ...

's ''

Hortus Kewensis ''Hortus Kewensis, or a Catalogue of the Plants Cultivated in the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew'' by William Aiton was a 1789 catalogue of all the plant species then in cultivation at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is ...

''. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

(''cinerea'') means "ash-covered" or "grey".

Distribution and habitat

Showy bossiaea grows in forest, woodland, coastal heath and scrub, south from Bega in New South Wales, through southern Victoria to far south-eastern South Australia. It is common and widespread in Tasmania.

Use in horticulture

This bossiaea grows best in well drained soils but tolerates salty winds and dry conditions. It can be grown in full sun but prefers partial shade.

Gallery

File:The Botanical register consisting of coloured figures of (1815) (14773175345).jpg, Illustraion of ''Bossiaea cinerea'' from the

Botanical Register ''The Botanical Register'', subsequently known as ''Edwards's Botanical Register'', was an illustrated horticultural magazine that ran from 1815 to 1847. It was started by the botanical illustrator Sydenham Edwards, who had previously illustrate ...

File:Bossiaea cinerea 1.jpg, The numerous flowers growing singly along the stem File:Bossiaea cinerea 2.jpg, A closer-up view of the flowers of ''Bossiaea cinerea'' File:Bossiaea cinerea 3.jpg, Image showing the back of flower and alternating leaf arrangement File:Bossiaea cinerea 4.jpg, Pollination of ''Bossiaea cinerea'' by a bee (of unknown species)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4947576 cinerea Flora of New South Wales Flora of South Australia Flora of Tasmania Flora of Victoria (state) Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)