Boronia zeteticorum facts for kids
Boronia zeteticorum is a special kind of small, low-growing shrub. It's found only in a small part of the Northern Territory in Australia. This plant has fuzzy branches, leaves, and flowers. Its flowers are white, and the parts that protect the flower (called sepals) are bigger than the colorful petals.
Quick facts for kids Boronia zeteticorum |
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What Does It Look Like?
Boronia zeteticorum is a low-growing shrub with many branches. It usually grows to about 50 cm long. Its branches, leaves, and some flower parts are covered with tiny, star-shaped hairs that sit directly on the surface.
The leaves are simple, meaning they are not divided into smaller leaflets. They are shaped like an oval, about 10 to 35 mm long and 1.5 to 3.5 mm wide. Each leaf sits on a short stalk called a petiole, which is about 1 mm long.
The flowers grow one by one where a leaf meets the stem. This spot is called a leaf axil. Each flower has a fuzzy stalk, or pedicel, about 1.5 mm long. There are also small leaf-like parts called prophylls near the flower, about 2 mm long.
The sepals are white and fuzzy. They are shaped like an egg or a triangle, about 3.5 to 4 mm long and 2 mm wide. These sepals are longer and wider than the petals. The petals are also white, about 3 to 3.5 mm long and 1 to 1.5 mm wide. Both the sepals and petals grow larger as the fruit starts to form.
This plant has been seen flowering in March. Its fruit is a fuzzy capsule (a dry fruit that splits open) about 4 mm long and 2 mm wide.
How Did It Get Its Name?
The plant Boronia zeteticorum was officially described for the first time in 2008. This description was made by a scientist named Marco F. Duretto. He published it in a science journal called The Beagle: occasional papers of the Northern Territory Museum of Arts and Sciences.
The second part of its scientific name, zeteticorum, comes from an ancient Greek word, zetetikos. This word means "disposed to search" or "someone who likes to search."
Where Does It Grow?
This type of boronia plant has only been found in one specific area. It was discovered in a place with sandstone rocks near the Nabarlek Uranium Mine in the Northern Territory. The plants found there are called "type specimens" because they are the original examples used to describe the species.
