Diplolaena cinerea facts for kids

Diplolaena cinerea is a special kind of flowering plant that grows only on the west coast of Western Australia. It's known for its pretty pale orange flowers and unique leaves. These leaves feel a bit like paper and are covered in tiny, star-shaped hairs!

What it Looks Like

Diplolaena cinerea is a bushy shrub that can grow up to about 1.2 meters (or about 4 feet) tall. Imagine a plant that's taller than a small child but not as tall as an adult!

Its leaves are soft and feel like paper. They are shaped like an oval, wide in the middle and narrower at the ends. The leaves are usually about 2 to 3 centimeters long (about the size of a large paperclip) and sit on a short stem called a petiole, which is about 4 to 8 millimeters long.

One cool thing about these leaves is their texture. The top side has soft, silky, short hairs that are shaped like tiny stars! The bottom side is also soft and velvety.

The flowers are quite small, about 2 centimeters across. They have special leaf-like parts called bracts around them. The outer bracts are oval-shaped and about 1 centimeter long. The inner bracts are a bit longer and covered in soft, grey hairs.

The petals of the flowers are about 9 millimeters long and have tiny, woolly hairs along their edges. Inside the flower, you'll find stamens (the parts that produce pollen) that are about 1.5 centimeters long. These stamens are green to pale orange and also have soft, star-shaped hairs near their base. This plant usually blooms from July to September.

How it Was Named

This plant was officially described for the first time in 1998. It was named by a botanist named Paul G. Wilson. He wrote about it in a science journal called Nuytsia.

Where it Grows

Diplolaena cinerea grows mostly in woodland areas. It likes soil that is gravelly or sandy, often found over a type of rock called laterite. You can find it along the west coast of Western Australia, from a place called Mount Peron down to Dandaragan.