''Philotheca buxifolia'' is a species of flowering plant in the family

Rutaceae The Rutaceae is a family, commonly known as the rueRUTACEAE
in BoDD – Botanical Derm ...

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 elsew ...

to New South Wales. It is a shrub with more or less oblong leaves and solitary white to pink flowers arranged singly on the ends of branchlets.

Description

''Philotheca buxifolia'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of and has branchlets with short, stiff hairs. The leaves are round to broadly elliptical or egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, long and wedge-shaped or heart-shaped near the base. The flowers are borne singly on the ends of branchlets, each flower 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. 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 broadly triangular and fleshy, long and the petals white to pink, broadly elliptical and long. The ten

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 are free from each other with a prominent appendage on the

anther 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 filam ...

. Flowering occurs from winter to spring and the fruit is about long with a beak about long.

Taxonomy

This species was first formally described in 1809 by

James Edward Smith James Edward Smith may refer to: * James Edward Smith (botanist), English botanist and founder of the Linnean Society * James Edward Smith (murderer), American murderer * James Edward Smith (politician), Canadian businessman and mayor of Toronto * ...

in '' The Cyclopaedia'' from specimens "gathered near

Port Jackson Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...

by Dr White". In 1998,

Paul G. Wilson Paul Graham Wilson (born 1928) is an Australian botanist. He has been a most prolific contributor to the journal ''Nuytsia (journal), Nuytsia'', contributing to the first issue in 1970 and to the 12th volume in 1998, which was dedicated to him f ...

changed the name to ''Philotheca buxifolius'' and described three subspecies in the journal ''

Nuytsia ''Nuytsia floribunda'' is a hemiparasitic tree found in Western Australia. The species is known locally as moodjar and, more recently, the Christmas tree or Western Australian Christmas tree. The display of intensely bright flowers during the ...

''. The names of the three subspecies are accepted by the

Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Syst ...

: * ''Eriostemon buxifolia'' (Sm.) Paul G.Wilson subsp. ''buxifolia'', commonly known as box-leaf waxflower has leaves are round to broadly elliptical, not folded lengthwise and have a heart-shaped base, and is mainly found in the Sydney area; * ''Eriostemon buxifolia'' subsp. ''falcata'' Paul G.Wilson has leaves are round to broadly elliptical, not folded lengthwise and have a heart-shaped base, the subspecies only occurring in the

Jervis Bay Jervis Bay () is a oceanic bay and village on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia, said to possess the whitest sand in the world. A area of land around the southern headland of the bay is a territory of the Commonwealth of Australia ...

area; * ''Eriostemon buxifolia'' subsp. ''obovata'' Paul G.Wilson has egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base and a wedge-shaped base, the subspecies occurring near

Gosford Gosford is the city and administrative centre of the Central Coast Council local government area in the heart of the Central Coast region, about north of Sydney and about south of Newcastle. The city centre is situated at the northern extre ...

and near

Ulladulla Ulladulla is a coastal town in New South Wales, Australia in the City of Shoalhaven local government area. It is on the Princes Highway about south of Sydney, halfway between Batemans Bay to the south and Nowra to the north. Ulladulla has cl ...

Distribution

''Philotheca buxifolia'' grows in heath on sandstone in coastal areas of New South Wales between Gosford and Ulladulla.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7186288 buxifolia Sapindales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Taxa named by James Edward Smith Plants described in 1809