''Olearia brevipedunculata'', commonly known as the dusty daisy-bush (although this name may also refer to '' O. phlogopappa''), is a small shrub with whitish-grey foliage and white daisy-like flowers in summer. Mostly found in Victoria and scattered locations in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia.

Description

''Olearia brevipedunuculata'' is a small upright shrub to about high. The branchlets are covered in grey-whitish thickly matted small star shaped hairs. The leaves grow alternately are

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

or with an obscure stalk. The leaves may be egg-shaped, oval or oblong long and wide. The upper leaf surface is greyish with dense sparsely scattered star-shaped hairs. The leaf underside is grey-whitish, occasionally yellowish and covered in densely matted star-shaped hairs obscuring the leaf veins. The leaf margin is entire or with an irregular scalloped edge. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

is a cluster of 12-22 daisy-like flowers in diameter in a single spray at the apex of branchlets on a short stem. The overlapping

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 are in rows of 3 or 4, are more or less hemispherical long with fine silky hairs. The white flower petals are long. The flower centre is yellow. The fruit is a flattened cylindrical shape with obscure ribbing, long with flattened silky hairs, occasionally glandular. Flowering occurs from December to January.

Taxonomy and naming

''Olearia brevipedunculata'' was first formally described by N.G. Walsh in 2004 and the description published in ''Muelleria''. 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 ...

(''brevipedunculata'') is derived from the

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 ...

words ''brevis'' meaning "short" and ''pedunculus'' meaning "small, slender stalk".

Distribution and habitat

The dusty daisy-bush is found in alpine, heath and shrubland areas of the Bogong High Plains and higher locations from

Mount Buffalo Mount Buffalo is a mountain plateau of the Australian Alps and is within the Mount Buffalo National Park in Victoria, Australia. It is located approximately northeast of Melbourne. It is noted for its dramatic scenery. The summit of the highes ...

and near Mount Kent in Victoria. It is also found in scattered locations in New South Wales.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15597174 brevipedunculata Asterales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of Victoria (Australia) Plants described in 2018 Taxa named by Neville Grant Walsh