''Myoporum parvifolium'', commonly known as creeping boobialla, creeping myoporum, dwarf native myrtle or small leaved myoporum is a plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae. It is a low, spreading shrub with long, trailing stems and white, star-shaped flowers and is endemic to southern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

including Flinders Island.

Description

Creeping boobialla is a prostrate, spreading shrub sometimes forming a mat in diameter. Its leaves are fleshy and glabrous, usually long, wide and egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base. They are arranged alternately, sometimes have a few serrations on the margins near the leaf tip and sometimes have raised, wart-like tubercles on their surface. White flowers with purple spots appear in the leaf axils singly or in clusters of two or three on a stalk long. The flowers have five lance-shaped sepals and five

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s joined at their bases to form a tube. The tube is about long and the lobes are spreading, blunt and long. As a result, the diameter of the flower is about . There are four

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s which extend beyond the petals. Peak flowering times are winter to summer in New South Wales and October to March in South Australia and the fruit that follows are succulent, rounded, yellowish-white and up to in diameter.

Taxonomy and naming

''Myoporum parvifolium'' was first formally described by botanist Robert Brown in '' Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae'' in 1810. 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 ...

''parvifolium'' is derived from the Latin ''parvus'', "small" and ''folium'', "leaf".Backer, C.A. (1936). ''Verklarend woordenboek der wetenschappelijke namen van de in Nederland en Nederlandsch-Indië in het wild groeiende en in tuinen en parken gekweekte varens en hoogere planten'' (Edition Nicoline van der Sijs).

Distribution and habitat

''Myoporum parvifolium'' occurs in the south-west corner of New South Wales, and from the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia eastwards to Victoria. It is common along much of the Murray River in South Australia. It often grows on limestone cliffs, along river flats and in woodland in sandy sometimes saline soils.

Use in horticulture

Creeping boobialla is a useful ground cover and is often cultivated for that purpose. It prefers a well-drained, sunny position but is hardy in most situations. It is usually propagated from cuttings and has been used as a rootstock for more difficult related species such as '' Eremophila''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q6948023 parvifolium Flora of South Australia Flora of Victoria (Australia) Lamiales of Australia Garden plants of Australia Groundcovers Plants described in 1810 Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)