Blue goodenia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Blue goodenia |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Goodenia
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| Species: |
azurea
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The Goodenia azurea, also known as blue goodenia, is a beautiful flowering plant. It belongs to the Goodeniaceae family. This plant is special because it is found only in northern Australia. It's a type of perennial herb, which means it lives for more than two years. It often grows upright, but can also spread out. Its leaves are egg-shaped, and its flowers are a lovely bluish-purple color.
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About the Blue Goodenia Plant
The blue goodenia is a plant that can grow quite tall, usually between 0.8 and 1 meter high. Its leaves have a slightly waxy, bluish-green look, which scientists call "glaucous." The leaves are shaped like an egg, with the narrower part at the bottom. They can be up to 70 millimeters long and 15 millimeters wide. The edges of the leaves often have small, uneven teeth.
Flowers and Fruit
The pretty bluish-purple flowers grow in long clusters, sometimes up to 500 millimeters long. Each flower sits on a short stalk, and at its base, there are small, leaf-like parts called bracteoles. The petals are about 12 to 15 millimeters long. You can see these flowers blooming from April to October. After the flowers fade, the plant produces oval-shaped fruits called capsules. These fruits are about 10 to 12 millimeters long.
Naming the Blue Goodenia
Plants are given special scientific names so that people all over the world can identify them. The blue goodenia was first officially described in 1859. This was done by a scientist named Ferdinand von Mueller in his book Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae.
Different Types of Blue Goodenia
In 2006, two more scientists, Leigh William Sage and David Edward Albrecht, found that there are two slightly different types, or subspecies, of blue goodenia. These are:
- Goodenia azurea subsp. azurea: This type has bracteoles (the small leaf-like parts near the flowers) that are broadly egg-shaped. They are usually less than twice as long as they are wide.
- Goodenia azurea subsp. hesperia: This type has bracteoles that are more lance-shaped, oblong, or elliptic. They are usually more than twice as long as they are wide.
The name azurea means "azure" or "deep blue," which describes the color of its flowers. The subspecies name hesperia means "western," because this type is found in the western parts of Australia.
Where Blue Goodenia Grows
Blue goodenia likes to grow in sandy soil that has small, reddish-brown pebbles. You can find it in the northern central parts of Australia.
Specific Locations
The azurea subspecies grows in far western Queensland, central Northern Territory, and central north-eastern Western Australia. The hesperia subspecies is found only in Western Australia. It grows in several desert areas there, like the Great Sandy Desert and the Gibson Desert. It also grows in other regions of Western Australia, including Gascoyne and Pilbara.
Is Blue Goodenia in Danger?
Good news! The blue goodenia is not considered to be in danger of disappearing. The Western Australian Government's Department of Parks and Wildlife says it is "not threatened." The Queensland Government also lists it as being of "least concern." This means there are plenty of these plants in the wild. Both subspecies are also considered "not threatened" in Western Australia. The azurea subspecies is also listed as "least concern" in the Northern Territory.
