''Myoporum insulare'', commonly known as common boobialla, native juniper, is a species of flowering plant in the figwort family

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 else ...

to coastal areas of Australia. It is a shrub or small tree which grows on dunes and coastal cliffs, is very salt tolerant and widely used in horticulture. Myoporum insulare IMG 20180202 141456 2 (25174324717)

Myoporum insulare IMG 20180202 141456 2 (25174324717)

Description

Boobialla varies in form from a prostrate shrub to a small, erect tree growing to a height of . It has thick, smooth green leaves which are long and wide with edges that are either untoothed or toothed toward the apex. The leaves are egg-shaped and the upper and lower surfaces are the same dull green colour. White flowers with purple spots appear in the leaf axils in clusters of three to eight and are in diameter. There are five

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of ...

, smooth

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 coine ...

s and the tube formed by the petals is long with the lobes of the tube about the same length. The four stamens usually extend slightly beyond the tube. Peak flowering times are July to February in Western Australia and October to December in south-eastern Australia. Flowering is followed by the fruit which is a smooth, rounded purple to black drupe in diameter.

Taxonomy and naming

''Myoporum insulare'' was first formally described by botanist Robert Brown in ''

Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae ''Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen'' (Prodromus of the Flora of New Holland and Van Diemen's Land) is a flora of Australia written by botanist Robert Brown and published in 1810. Often referred to as ''Prodromus Flora Novae ...

'' in 1810. The specific epithet '' insulare'' is a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word meaning "from an island".

Distribution and habitat

''Myoporum insulare'' occurs in coastal areas of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania. In New South Wales it occurs from Eden southward, although an isolated occurrence was recorded much further north on Brush Island. It is also found on

Lord Howe Island Lord Howe Island (; formerly Lord Howe's Island) is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, part of the Australian state of New South Wales. It lies directly east of mainland P ...

. In Victoria it is found in coastal areas but also inland in the west of that state. Boobialla is common along the coast of South Australia and in Western Australia it occurs south from Shark Bay to the South Australian border. It grows in sandy soils, often between rocks or near sandstone. ''Myoporum insulare'' is invasive in several African countries and in the western coastal areas of the US. Invasive populations may include some other species of this genus. In South Africa this species is known as manatoka.

Uses

Horticulture

''Myoporum insulare'' may be used as a fast-growing

hedge A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate a road from adjoin ...

windbreak A windbreak (shelterbelt) is a planting usually made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs planted in such a manner as to provide shelter from the wind and to protect soil from erosion. They are commonly planted in hedgerows around the edges ...

species which withstands coastal winds and drought. It is hardy in well-drained positions and is easily propagated from cuttings. It is also used as

rootstock A rootstock is part of a plant, often an underground part, from which new above-ground growth can be produced. It could also be described as a stem with a well developed root system, to which a bud from another plant is grafted. It can refer to a ...

for propagating many '' Eremophila'' species.

Bush tucker

The purple fruit is edible,Ellis, M. & Norden, L. 2015. A Field Guide to Coastal Saltmarsh Plants in Victoria, South Gippsland Conservation Society, Inverloch. and is good for making jams and jellies. However, in most states in Australia it is illegal to collect the fruit of native plants in the wild.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q6948020 insulare Flora of New South Wales Flora of South Australia Flora of Tasmania Flora of Victoria (Australia) Flora of Lord Howe Island Eudicots of Western Australia Lamiales of Australia Garden plants of Australia Plants described in 1810 Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)