Persoonia rufa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Persoonia rufa |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Persoonia
|
| Species: |
rufa
|
Persoonia rufa is a special kind of flowering plant. It belongs to the Proteaceae family, which includes many unique Australian plants. This plant is endemic to a small area in New South Wales, Australia. This means it only grows naturally in that one specific place.
Persoonia rufa is a shrub that can grow upright or spread out. Its young branches are covered in tiny hairs, and its leaves are shaped like an oval. The plant produces pretty yellow flowers. These flowers grow in groups of up to twelve along a stem, and each flower has a small leaf at its base.
Contents
What Does Persoonia rufa Look Like?
Persoonia rufa is a shrub that usually grows between 1 and 2.5 meters (about 3 to 8 feet) tall. It has smooth bark, but its younger branches are covered with brownish or rust-colored hairs.
Leaves and Flowers
The leaves of this plant are oval-shaped. They are usually 30 to 80 millimeters (about 1 to 3 inches) long and 10 to 25 millimeters (about 0.4 to 1 inch) wide.
The yellow flowers grow in groups of up to twelve. They are arranged along a central stem called a rachis, which can be up to 110 millimeters (about 4 inches) long. Each flower sits on a tiny stalk, called a pedicel, which is 1 to 3 millimeters long. At the base of each flower's stalk, there is a small leaf or scale. The flower parts, called tepals, are yellow and measure 10 to 14 millimeters (about 0.4 to 0.5 inches) long.
When Does it Flower?
Persoonia rufa blooms during the summer months, from December to February. After flowering, it produces a fruit called a drupe. This fruit is green, sometimes with purple stripes.
Naming the Persoonia rufa
This plant was officially named Persoonia rufa in 1991. Two botanists, Peter H. Weston and Lawrie Johnson, described it for the first time. They found a sample of the plant in the Gibraltar Range National Park in 1990. Their description was published in a science journal called Telopea.
The second part of its name, rufa, comes from a Latin word. It refers to the reddish hairs found on the plant's young branches.
Where Does Persoonia rufa Live?
This special geebung (a common name for plants in the Persoonia genus) is only found in the Gibraltar Range National Park in New South Wales. It grows in eucalyptus forests, especially in areas where the soil comes from granite rock.
