Melaleuca johnsonii facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Melaleuca johnsonii |
|
|---|---|
.JPG) |
|
| M. johnsonii growing 10 km east of Hyden. | |
Scientific classification  |
|
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Myrtales |
| Family: | Myrtaceae |
| Genus: | Melaleuca |
| Species: |
M. johnsonii
|
| Binomial name | |
| Melaleuca johnsonii Craven
|
|
| Script error: The function "autoWithCaption" does not exist. | |
Script error: No such module "Check for conflicting parameters".
Melaleuca johnsonii is a special kind of plant that belongs to the myrtle family. It is found only in the southern part of Western Australia. This plant looks a bit like another plant called Melaleuca thapsina. Both have long, round leaves with pointy tips and usually yellow flowers. But you can tell Melaleuca johnsonii apart because its leaves are shorter and its flower parts (called sepals) are thin like paper.
Contents
What Melaleuca johnsonii Looks Like
Melaleuca johnsonii is a bush that can grow up to about 3 meters (10 feet) tall. It has bark that feels like fibers. Its leaves grow one after another along the stem. They are usually between 7 and 16.5 millimeters (about 0.3 to 0.6 inches) long and 0.9 to 17.5 millimeters (about 0.03 to 0.7 inches) wide. The leaves are shaped like thin lines and are somewhat oval when you look at them from the end. They get narrower at the tip, ending in a sharp point.
Flowers and Fruit
The flowers of Melaleuca johnsonii are usually yellow. Sometimes they can be creamy-white or even pink. They grow in round groups at the ends of the branches. These branches keep growing even after the flowers have bloomed. Sometimes, flowers also grow where the leaves meet the stem.
Each group of flowers is about 13 millimeters (0.5 inches) wide. These groups are made up of 4 to 7 smaller sets of three flowers. The sepals, which are small leaf-like parts that protect the flower bud, are very tiny (0.1 to 0.3 millimeters long) and feel like paper. The petals are about 1.0 to 1.5 millimeters long and fall off as the flower gets older. Inside the flower, there are five groups of stamens (the parts that make pollen), with 3 to 5 stamens in each group.
Melaleuca johnsonii usually flowers between August and November. After the flowers, it grows woody fruits that are like small, hard cases. These fruits are about 1.5 to 3 millimeters long and grow in round clusters around the stem.
.JPG)
How Melaleuca johnsonii Got Its Name
The plant Melaleuca johnsonii was officially described for the first time in 1999. This was done by a scientist named Lyndley Craven. He wrote about it in a science journal called Australian Systematic Botany. He studied a plant sample that was found about 80 kilometers (50 miles) west of Esperance.
The second part of the plant's name, johnsonii, was chosen to honor Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson. He was an Australian plant expert, also known as a taxonomist, who studied how plants are classified.
Where Melaleuca johnsonii Grows
Melaleuca johnsonii is found in several areas of Western Australia. These areas include places around Hyden, Marvel Loch, Norseman, Newdegate, and Esperance. It grows in different types of natural areas, including the Avon Wheatbelt, Coolgardie, Esperance Plains, and Mallee regions. You can often find this plant growing in sandy soil with gravel or in claypans, which are flat areas of hard clay.
Is Melaleuca johnsonii Safe?
The Government of Western Australia's Department of Parks and Wildlife keeps track of plants and animals. They have listed Melaleuca johnsonii as "not threatened." This means that there are enough of these plants in the wild, and they are not currently in danger of disappearing.
