Short leaved starflower facts for kids

Calytrix brevifolia, also known as the short leaved starflower, is a species of plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae that is endemic to Western Australia.

The shrub typically grows to a height of 0.3 to 2 metres (1 to 7 ft). It blooms between August and January producing pink star-shaped flowers The shrub has an erect habit with thick leaves that are very small, approximately 3 millimetres (0.12 in) in length. The flowers are comparatively large with a diameter of 15 to 20 mm (0.6 to 0.8 in) and are deep pink to magenta in colour with a yellow centre. The flowers have fine hairs which extend from the calyx lobes beyond the petals.

Often found in heath and woodlands on sandplains in coastal areas of the Mid West and Gascoyne regions of Western Australia where it grows in sandy soils.

The species was originally described as Calycothrix brevifolia by the botanist Carl Meisner in 1857 in the Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society, Botany and later reclassified into the genus Calytrix by George Bentham in 1867 in the work Orders XLVIII. Myrtaceae- LXII. Compositae in Flora Australiensis.