Lachnostachys facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lachnostachys |
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| Lachnostachys eriobotrya | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Lamiaceae |
| Subfamily: | Prostantheroideae |
| Genus: | Lachnostachys Hook. |
| Type species | |
| Lachnostachys ferruginea |
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| Synonyms | |
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Lachnostachys is a group of flowering plants. They are often called Lambs tails because of their soft, woolly flowers. These plants belong to the Lamiaceae family, which is also known as the mint family. The first time these plants were officially described was in 1842 by a scientist named William Jackson Hooker.
The name Lachnostachys comes from two old Greek words. Lachnề means "wool" and -stachys means "like a spike." So, the name describes the plant's flowers, which look like woolly spikes. All Lachnostachys plants are endemic to Western Australia. This means they are only found naturally in that part of the world.
Scientists studied these plants in 2009. They found that Lachnostachys is closely related to two other plant groups, Newcastelia and Physopsis.
What Lambs Tails Look Like
Plants in the Lachnostachys group are usually shrubs or small shrubs. They grow to be about 0.3 to 1.5 meters (about 1 to 5 feet) tall. They do not have any strong smells like some other mint family plants.
Their young stems are round and covered in a thick, soft, woolly layer of tangled hairs. The leaves grow in pairs, one on each side of the stem. Each new pair grows at a right angle to the pair below it. This pattern is called "decussate."
The leaves can be flat or have edges that curl downwards. They have veins that look like a feather, which is called "pinnately veined." Both sides of the leaves are usually woolly. However, older leaves might become a bit wrinkled and lose some of their hair. The leaves have different types of hairs, including simple ones and star-shaped ones.
Different Kinds of Lambs Tails
There are several different species, or types, of Lachnostachys plants. Here are some of them:
- Lachnostachys albicans Hook.
- Lachnostachys bracteosa C.A.Gardner
- Lachnostachys coolgardiensis S.Moore
- Lachnostachys eriobotrya (F.Muell.) Druce
- Lachnostachys ferruginea Hook.
- Lachnostachys verbascifolia F.Muell
