''Leptospermum liversidgei'', commonly known as the olive tea-tree, is a species of compact 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 eastern Australia. It has narrow egg-shaped, lemon-scented leaves, white or pink flowers and woody fruit that remain on the plant at maturity.

Description

''Leptospermum liversidgei'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of and has thin, rough bark on the main branches and hairy young stems. The leaves are crowded, narrow egg-shaped and lemon-scented, mostly long and wide on a very short petiole. The flowers are white or pink, wide 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, arranged singly on the ends of short, leafless side branches. 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 dark coloured, about 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 hemispherical to triangular, about 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 about long and the

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 long. Flowering mainly occurs in January and the fruit is a woody capsule wide and that is not shed when mature.

Taxonomy and naming

''Leptospermum liversidgei'' was first formally described in 1905 by

Richard Thomas Baker Richard Thomas Baker (1 December 1854 – 14 July 1941) was an Australian economic botanist, museum curator and educator. Early life Baker was born in Woolwich, England, son of Richard Thomas Baker, a blacksmith, and his wife Sarah, née Colkett. ...

and

Henry George Smith Henry George Smith (26 July 1852 – 19 September 1924) was an Australian chemist whose pioneering work on the chemistry of the essential oils of the Australian flora achieved worldwide recognition. Smith was born at Littlebourne, Kent, Englan ...

in the '' Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales''. 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 ...

(''liversidgei'') honours

Archibald Liversidge Archibald Liversidge FRS FRSE FRSNSW LLD (17 November 1847 – 26 September 1927) was an English-born chemist and a co-founder of the Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science. Early life Liversidge was born at Turnham Green, ...

Distribution and habitat

Olive tea-tree occurs in coastal swamps between the

Bundaberg Bundaberg is a city in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia, and is the tenth largest city in the state. Bundaberg's regional area has a population of 70,921, and is a major centre of the Wide Bay–Burnett geographical region. The Bun ...

region of Queensland and

Tomago Tomago is a combined industrial/semi-rural suburb of the Port Stephens local government area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located just north of the Hunter River and west of the body of water known as Fullerton Cove. ...

in New South Wales where it grows in heath.

Use in horticulture

The size of this tea-tree makes it suitable for smaller gardens where it will tolerate poorly-drained soil and at least moderate frost. The leaves contain the essential oil

citronellal Citronellal or rhodinal ( C10 H18 O) is a monoterpenoid aldehyde, the main component in the mixture of terpenoid chemical compounds that give citronella oil its distinctive lemon scent. Citronellal is a main isolate in distilled oils from the pl ...

and the plant is sometimes alleged to repel mosquitoes.

References

* Harden, G.J., ''Flora of New South Wales, Volume 2'', . {{Taxonbar, from=Q722179 liversidgei Flora of New South Wales Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1905 Taxa named by Richard Thomas Baker