''Hovea'' is a genus of about forty species of flowering plants in the family
, 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 Australia. Plants in this genus are sub-shrubs, shrubs or small trees with simple leaves and purple, blue or mauve flowers with a white centre. The fruit is a
pod
Pod or POD may refer to:
Biology
* Pod (fruit), a type of fruit of a flowering plant
* Husk or pod of a legume
* Pod of whales or other marine mammals
* "-pod", a suffix meaning "foot" used in taxonomy
Electronics and computing
* Proper ort ...
containing brown to blackish seeds. Species of ''Hovea'' occur in all Australian states, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.
Description
Plants in the genus ''Hovea'' are sub-shrubs, shrubs or sometimes small trees. The leaves are arranged alternately and are
simple
Simple or SIMPLE may refer to:
*Simplicity, the state or quality of being simple
Arts and entertainment
* ''Simple'' (album), by Andy Yorke, 2008, and its title track
* "Simple" (Florida Georgia Line song), 2018
* "Simple", a song by Johnn ...
, usually with
stipules at the base and sometimes with prickly edges. The flowers are arranged in leaf axils with
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 two
bracteoles at the base of 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. The upper two sepal lobes are usually joined to form a broad "lip". The petals are purple, blue or mauve, rarely white, and the
standard petal is circular to
oblate
In Christianity (especially in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican and Methodist traditions), an oblate is a person who is specifically dedicated to God or to God's service.
Oblates are individuals, either laypersons or clergy, normally livi ...
, longer than 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 ...
. The ten
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 are joined into a sheath open on the upper side, and differ in length. There are usually only two
ovule
In seed plants, the ovule is the structure that gives rise to and contains the female reproductive cells. It consists of three parts: the ''integument'', forming its outer layer, the ''nucellus'' (or remnant of the megasporangium), and the fe ...
s in the
ovary
The ovary is an organ in the female reproductive system that produces an ovum. When released, this travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where it may become fertilized by a sperm. There is an ovary () found on each side of the body. ...
and the fruit is a spherical to oval pod. The seeds are usually long and brown to black with an
aril
An aril (pronounced ), also called an arillus, is a specialized outgrowth from a seed that partly or completely covers the seed. An arillode or false aril is sometimes distinguished: whereas an aril grows from the attachment point of the see ...
.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Hovea'' was first formally described in 1812 by
Robert Brown in
Aiton'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 ...
'', and the first species he described were ''
H. linearis'' and ''
H. longifolia''
The genus name honours the Polish botanist and plant collector,
Anton Pantaleon Hove.
Distribution
Species of ''Hovea'' occur in all states and mainland territories of Australia.
Species list
The following is a list of species of ''Hovea'' accepted by the
Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Syst ...
as at June 2021:
* ''
Hovea acanthoclada''
(Turcz.) F.Muell. — thorny hovea (W.A.)
* ''
Hovea acutifolia''
A. Cunn. ex G. Don — northern hovea (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea angustissima''
I. Thomps. (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea apiculata''
A. Cunn. ex G.Don (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea arnhemica''
J.H. Ross (N.T.)
* ''
Hovea asperifolia''
I. Thomps. (N.S.W., A.C.T., Vic.)
* ''
Hovea chorizemifolia
''Hovea chorizemifolia'', commonly known as the holly-leaved hovea, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small, upright shrub with prickly, green leaves and blue ...
''
DC. — holly-leaved hovea (W.A.)
* ''
Hovea clavata''
I. Thomps. (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea corrickiae''
J.H. Ross (Vic., Tas.)
* ''
Hovea cymbiformis''
I. Thomps. (N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea densivellosa''
I. Thomps. (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea elliptica''
(Sm.) DC. — tree hovea (W.A.)
* ''
Hovea graniticola''
I. Thomps. (N.S.W., Qld.)
* ''
Hovea heterophylla''
A. Cunn. ex Hook. f. (Qld., N.S.W., A.C.T., Vic., Tas.)
* ''
Hovea impressinerva''
I. Thomps. (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea lanceolata''
Sims (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea linearis''
(Sm.) R. Br. — common hovea (S.A., Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea longifolia''
R.Br. — rusty pods, long-leaf hovea (N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea longipes''
Benth. (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea lorata''
I. Thomps. (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea magnibractea''
I. Thomps. (Vic., Tas.)
* ''
Hovea montana''
(Hook. f.) J.H. Ross — mountain hovea, alpine rusty-pods, alpine hovea (N.S.W., A.C.T., Vic., Tas.)
* ''
Hovea nana''
I. Thomps. & J.H. Ross (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea nitida''
I. Thomps. (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea pannosa''
A. Cunn. ex Hook. f. (N.S.W., Vic.)
* ''
Hovea parvicalyx''
I. Thomps. (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea pedunculata''
I. Thomps. & J.H. Ross (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea planifolia''
(Domin) J.H. Ross (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea pungens
''Hovea pungens'', commonly known as devil's pins, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small, upright shrub with dark green leaves and purple flowers.
Description
''Hovea pungens'' ...
''
Benth. — devil's pins (W.A.)
* ''
Hovea purpurea''
Sweet (S.A., N.S.W., Vic.)
* ''
Hovea ramulosa''
A. Cunn. ex Lindl. (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea rosmarinifolia
''Hovea rosmarinifolia'', commonly known as mountain beauty or rosemary hovea is a shrub in the family Fabaceae, native to Australia. A small shrub bearing attractive blue-purple or mauve pea flowers from August to November.
Description
''Hovea ...
''
A. Cunn. — mountain beauty (N.S.W., Vic.)
* ''
Hovea similis''
I. Thomps. (Qld., N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea speciosa''
I. Thomps. (N.S.W.)
* ''
Hovea stricta''
Meissner (W.A.)
* ''
Hovea tasmanica''
I. Thomps. & J.H. Ross (Tas.)
* ''
Hovea tholiformis''
I. Thomps. (Qld.)
* ''
Hovea trisperma
''Hovea trisperma'', commonly known as ''common hovea'', it is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae. It is a small straggling shrub with purple-blue flowers and is endemic to Western Australia.
Description
''Hovea trisperma'' is a perenni ...
''
Benth. — common hovea (W.A.)
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2714213
Fabaceae genera
Fabales of Australia
Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)