''Leptospermum deuense'' is a species of shrub that 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 New South Wales. It is a leafy, densely branched shrub with rough bark on the older stems, elliptical leaves with a glossy upper surface, white flowers arranged singly or in pairs and woody fruit.

Description

''Leptospermum deuense'' is a leafy, densely branched shrub that typically grows to about high. It has rough bark on the older stems, smooth bark with soft hairs on the younger stems. The leaves are glossy green on the upper surface, densely hairy on the lower side, elliptical to lance-shaped, long and wide. The flowers are white and are borne singly or in pairs on short side branches, and are about in diameter. The

floral cup In angiosperms, a hypanthium or floral cup is a structure where basal portions of the calyx, the corolla, and the stamens form a cup-shaped tube. It is sometimes called a floral tube, a term that is also used for corolla tube and calyx tube. It ...

is hairy, about long 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 ...

or more 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 triangular, long and densely hairy. 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 about long and the stamens are about long. Flowering mainly occurs in February and the fruit is a woody capsule in diameter.

Taxonomy

This species was formally described in 1989 by Joy Thompson in the botanical journal '' Telopea'', based on plant material collected from

Deua National Park Deua is a national park located in New South Wales, Australia, south of Sydney, and east of Canberra. The nearest towns on the coast are Batemans Bay, Moruya and Narooma. A remote wilderness area of escarpments and gullies, waterfalls, limesto ...

in 1984. 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 ...

(''deuense'') refers to the collection of the type specimens near the

Deua River The Deua River, being the main perennial river of the Moruya River catchment, is located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features The Deua River rises about southeast of Bendethera Mountain, on the eastern s ...

Distribution and habitat

''Leptospermum deuense'' is only known from a small area on mountains in the

near

Moruya Moruya is a town located on the far south coast of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Moruya River. The Princes Highway runs through the town that is about south of Sydney and from Canberra. At the , Moruya had a population of 4 ...

where it grows in scrub or exposed woodland on a

rhyolite Rhyolite ( ) is the most silica-rich of volcanic rocks. It is generally glassy or fine-grained (aphanitic) in texture, but may be porphyritic, containing larger mineral crystals (phenocrysts) in an otherwise fine-grained groundmass. The mineral ...

ridge.

Use in horticulture

The species has only been recently introduced to cultivation, but has proved itself readily adaptable to a range of soil conditions and able to withstand frosts to . It can be propagated by seed or cuttings.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15367884 deuense Myrtales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Plants described in 1989