Safrole boronia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Safrole boronia |
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| Boronia safrolifera in Maranoa Gardens | |
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| Occurrence data from Australasian Virtual Herbarium |
The Boronia safrolifera, also known as safrole boronia, is a type of flowering plant found only in eastern Australia. It's a tall, woody bush with special leaves that have many small parts. Its flowers are usually white to pink and have four petals.
Contents
What Does Safrole Boronia Look Like?
The safrole boronia is a straight, woody bush that usually grows to be about 0.5 to 2.5 meters (about 1.5 to 8 feet) tall. Its branches are mostly smooth, without much hair.
Leaves of the Safrole Boronia
The leaves are called pinnate, which means they have smaller leaf parts, like a feather. Each leaf usually has between seven and nineteen small leaflets. The whole leaf can be 12 to 47 millimeters (about 0.5 to 1.8 inches) long and 14 to 35 millimeters (about 0.5 to 1.4 inches) wide. A small stem called a petiole connects the leaf to the branch, and it's about 3 to 11 millimeters long.
The leaflet at the very end of the leaf is shaped like a narrow egg. It's usually 2.5 to 7 millimeters long and 1 to 2 millimeters wide. The leaflets on the sides are similar but a bit longer. The underside of each leaflet is a lighter shade of green.
Flowers of the Safrole Boronia
The flowers grow in groups of three to twelve. You can find them where the leaves meet the stem (called leaf axils) or at the ends of the branches. Each group of flowers grows on a main stalk called a peduncle, which is 1 to 20 millimeters long. Each individual flower has its own tiny stem, called a pedicel, about 2 to 4 millimeters long.
The flowers have four small, triangular parts called sepals, which are about 1 to 1.5 millimeters long and smooth. They also have four petals that are white to light pink, about 4.5 to 7 millimeters long, and have a few soft hairs. Inside the flower, there are eight stamens, which are usually hairy. The stigma (the part that receives pollen) is about the same width as the style (the stalk connecting the stigma to the ovary).
Safrole boronia mainly blooms from August to October. After flowering, it produces a fruit that is a smooth capsule, about 3 to 4.5 millimeters long and 2 to 2.5 millimeters wide.
Where Does Safrole Boronia Grow?
Safrole boronia grows in areas close to the coast in eastern Australia. You can find it around the edges of swamps. Its range stretches from Port Stephens in New South Wales northwards to Bribie Island in south-eastern Queensland.
How Safrole Boronia Got Its Name
The plant was first officially described in 1924 by a scientist named Edwin Cheel. He published his description in a scientific journal.
The special part of its name, safrolifera, comes from the smell of a substance called safrole. This smell is released when you crush the leaves of the plant. The ending -fera is a Latin word that means "to carry" or "to bear," so the name means "carrying safrole."
See also
In Spanish: Boronia safrolifera para niños
