''Leptospermum microcarpum'' 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 eastern Australia. It has elliptical to lance-shaped leaves with a sharp point on the tip, white flowers and small fruit that falls from the plant shortly after the seeds are released.

Description

''Leptospermum microcarpum'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of or higher. It has variable bark, sometimes thin, rough and fibrous, sometimes smooth. The leaves are elliptical to narrow lance-shaped with the narrower end towards the base but usually with a sharp point about long on the tip. The leaves are up to long and wide on a short but distinct petiole. The flowers are white, wide and arranged singly or in pairs on a short side shoot. There are broad reddish brown

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 at the base of the flower bud but which fall off before the flower opens. 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 densely hairy, 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 oblong to hemispherical 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 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 from August to October and the fruit is a capsule wide, most of which are shed soon after the seeds are released.

Taxonomy and naming

''Leptospermum microcarpum'' was first formally described in 1923 by

Edwin Cheel Edwin Cheel (14 February 1872 – 19 September 1951) was an Australian botanist and collector. Before being appointed as a staff member of Centennial Park in 1897 he was a gardener in New South Wales and Queensland. Later he transferred to the R ...

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 ...

(''microcarpum'') is a Latin word meaning "small-fruited".

Distribution and habitat

This tea-tree grows on rocky mountains and cliff edges between the Wide Bay district in Queensland and

Ashford Ashford may refer to: Places Australia *Ashford, New South Wales *Ashford, South Australia *Electoral district of Ashford, South Australia Ireland *Ashford, County Wicklow *Ashford Castle, County Galway United Kingdom * Ashford, Kent, a town ** ...

in northern New South Wales.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15368941 microcarpum Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1923