''Eremophila duttonii'', commonly known as budda or harlequin fuchsia bush, is a

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the figwort

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Scrophulariaceae The Scrophulariaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the figwort family. The plants are annual and perennial herbs, as well as shrubs. Flowers have bilateral (zygomorphic) or rarely radial (actinomorphic) symmetry. The Scr ...

and is

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 mainland

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 ...

where it occurs in all the mainland states except

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. It is a shrub or small tree with dark green, sticky leaves and flowers that are red on top fading to yellow-green below. Extracts from this plant have been shown to have significant

antimicrobial An antimicrobial is an agent that kills microorganisms or stops their growth. Antimicrobial medicines can be grouped according to the microorganisms they act primarily against. For example, antibiotics are used against bacteria, and antifungals ar ...

activity.

Description

''Eremophila duttonii'' is a shrub or small tree growing to a height of between with branches that are rough due to old leaf bases, hairy, shiny and sticky due to the presence of

resin In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. Resins are usually mixtures of organic compounds. This article focuses on natu ...

. The leaves are arranged alternately along the branches, sometimes clustered near the ends of them and are mostly long, wide, linear to lance-shaped, tapering towards the ends and sticky. The flowers are borne singly in leaf axils on a stalk long. There are 5 overlapping, sticky, egg-shaped to elliptic

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 which are long. The

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 are long and joined at their lower end to form a tube. The top of the petal tube is red to orange, fading to yellowish-green below and inside the tube. Occasionally the petal tube is all yellow. The tube often has a few short hairs inside and out and is sticky on the outside. The 4

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 extend beyond the end of the tube. Flowering occurs from June to September and is followed by fruits which are dry, oval to cone-shaped with a pointed end and are long.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eremophila duttonii'' was first formally described in 1858 by

Ferdinand von Mueller Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (german: Müller; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Vict ...

in ''Quarterly Journal and Transactions of the Pharmaceutical Society of Victoria''. 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 ...

(''duttonii'') honours

Francis Dutton Francis Stacker Dutton CMG (18 October 1818 – 25 January 1877) was the seventh Premier of South Australia, serving twice, firstly in 1863 and again in 1865. History Dutton was born at Cuxhaven, Germany, where his father was British vice-con ...

, who was twice

Premier of South Australia The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...

Distribution and habitat

The most westerly distribution of ''Eremophila duttonii'' is the Warburton area of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. It occurs in southern

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

, South Australia, south-western

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

and western

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

as far east as

Broken Hill Broken Hill is an inland mining city in the far west of outback New South Wales, Australia. It is near the border with South Australia on the crossing of the Barrier Highway (A32) and the Silver City Highway (B79), in the Barrier Range. It is ...

. It grows in red-brown sandy soils on plains and hills.

Uses

Indigenous use

The Arrente people who call the plant ''aherre-intenhe'', collect the leaves for medicinal use. These uses included treatment of skin complaints, including those caused by the scabies mite. It was used as a gargle for sore throat and for painful eye and ear problems.

Medical applications

Study of six species of eremophilas showed that ''E. duttonii'' had the highest antimicrobial potency, especially against

gram-positive bacteria In bacteriology, gram-positive bacteria are bacteria that give a positive result in the Gram stain test, which is traditionally used to quickly classify bacteria into two broad categories according to their type of cell wall. Gram-positive bact ...

, including those that are resistant to the

antibiotics An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention o ...

meticillin Methicillin (USAN), also known as meticillin (INN), is a narrow-spectrum β-lactam antibiotic of the penicillin class. Methicillin was discovered in 1960. Medical uses Compared to other penicillins that face antimicrobial resistance due ...

and

vancomycin Vancomycin is a glycopeptide antibiotic medication used to treat a number of bacterial infections. It is recommended intravenously as a treatment for complicated skin infections, bloodstream infections, endocarditis, bone and joint infections, ...

. In another study, two

diterpene Diterpenes are a class of chemical compounds composed of four isoprene units, often with the molecular formula C20H32. They are biosynthesized by plants, animals and fungi via the HMG-CoA reductase pathway, with geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate being ...

s were found to be responsible for the antimicrobial activity of this species.

Use in horticulture

The species is seldom seen in cultivation. As it is difficult to propagate from both seed and cuttings,

grafting Grafting or graftage is a horticultural technique whereby tissues of plants are joined so as to continue their growth together. The upper part of the combined plant is called the scion () while the lower part is called the rootstock. The succ ...

on to rootsock of ''

Myoporum ''Myoporum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae (formerly placed in Myoporaceae). There are 30 species in the genus, eighteen of which are endemic to Australia although others are endemic to Pacific Islands, in ...

'' species is often undertaken to produce new plants. It is slow growing and prefers a dry, well-drained sunny position. It can withstand light frosts and is very drought tolerant.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5385568 duttonii Flora of New South Wales Flora of the Northern Territory Flora of Queensland Flora of South Australia Eudicots of Western Australia Plants described in 1858 Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller