Rock boronia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Rock boronia |
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| Boronia bipinnata growing in Carnarvon National Park | |
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| Where rock boronia grows in Australia (data from Australasian Virtual Herbarium) |
The rock boronia (scientific name: Boronia bipinnata) is a special plant that belongs to the citrus family, called Rutaceae. It is found only in Queensland, Australia, which means it is endemic to that area. This plant is a shrub that stands upright and has unique leaves that look like feathers. Its flowers are white and have four petals.
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What Does Rock Boronia Look Like?
The rock boronia is an upright shrub that can grow up to about 1 meter (3 feet) tall. Its stems have small bumps, which are actually tiny glands. The leaves are quite interesting! They are usually between 21 and 50 millimeters (about 1 to 2 inches) long and 20 to 60 millimeters (about 1 to 2.5 inches) wide. Each leaf has between seven and eleven smaller parts called leaflets.
Flowers and Fruit
Rock boronia plants produce beautiful white flowers. You can find them growing in groups of seven to twenty or more where the leaves meet the stem. Each flower has four round sepals, which are like small leaves that protect the flower bud. The four white petals are about 2.5 to 4 millimeters long. Inside the flower, there are eight stamens, which are the parts that produce pollen.
Rock boronia usually blooms from September all the way through June. After the flowers, the plant produces small, dull grey, and wrinkled fruits. These fruits are about 2 millimeters long and 1 millimeter wide.
How is it Different from Similar Plants?
There is another plant called Boronia occidentalis that used to be confused with rock boronia. However, Boronia occidentalis has smaller leaves with fewer leaflets. It also has fewer flowers in each group, and its stems are smooth, not bumpy like the rock boronia.
Where Does Rock Boronia Grow?
Rock boronia likes to grow in woodlands, sometimes even on steep hillsides. You can find it in the central highlands of Queensland. There are also some groups of these plants that grow separately in other areas, like the Blackdown Tableland National Park and near a town called St George.
Plant Names and History
The scientific name Boronia bipinnata was first officially described in 1848 by a scientist named John Lindley. He wrote about it in a book called Journal of an Expedition into the Interior of Tropical Australia, which was written by Thomas Mitchell.
The second part of the plant's name, bipinnata, comes from two Latin words. The word bi- means "two" or "double." The word pinnatus means "feathered" or "winged." This name perfectly describes the plant's unique, feather-like leaves!
