White waratah facts for kids
Quick facts for kids White waratah |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Agastachys
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| Species: |
odorata
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Agastachys odorata, commonly known as the white waratah, is the sole member of the genus Agastachys in the protea family. It is an evergreen shrub to small tree and is endemic to the heaths and button grass sedgelands of western Tasmania. It occurs most often in moist heath and scrub and occasionally in the alpine regions, but generally prefers well-drained but poor soils. It can grow in some rainforests where it forms a small tree but is normally a shrub in all other situations. The heaviest concentrations are along the island's south coast. Its leaves are dark green, hairless and almost succulent. Masses of white flowers are produced in erect spikes from the ends of the branches. Measuring 8 to 12 cm high, they appear in January and February.
Scottish botanist Robert Brown described Agastachys odorata in 1810, and it still bears its common name today. The genus only contains the single species, and has been grouped with the Australian genera Agastachys, Symphionema and New Caledonian genera Beauprea and Beaupreopsis in the subtribe Cenarrheninae by Johnston and Briggs in 1975. However, Peter H. Weston and Nigel Barker reviewed the suprageneric relationships of the Proteaceae in 2006, using molecular and morphological data. In this scheme Agastachys and Symphionema are sister taxa in a clade which diverged early from the main lineage, and they are classified in their own subfamily Symphionematoideae.
Agastachys odorata is known to be highly susceptible to Phytophthora cinnamomi dieback.
Images for kids
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Figure 1. Morphology of Agastachys odorata leaves © Roger Fryer and Jill Newland 2010 - 2017
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Figure 2. Morphology of Agastachys odorata erect flowers spikes © 2019 University of Tasmania
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Figure 3: Distribution of Agastachys odorata across Tasmania, Australia. The darker the colour of dot, the higher the concentration of individual
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Figure 4: Agastachys odorata in full bloom at Frenchmans Cap, Tasmania © Jenkinson, 2021
See also
In Spanish: Agastachys odorata para niños
