Narrow-leaved orange thorn facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Narrow-leaved orange thorn |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Pittosporum
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| Species: |
lancifolium
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Pittosporum lancifolium, also known as the narrow-leaved orange thorn or sticky orange thorn, is a cool shrub or small tree that grows in eastern Australia. You can often find it in places high up, usually above 500 meters (about 1,640 feet) above sea level. It grows from Mallanganee National Park in New South Wales in the south, all the way up to Yarraman in south-east Queensland in the north.
This plant often grows alongside the Hoop Pine tree. It prefers the drier parts of rainforests, especially where the soil is rich from basalt rock. The scientific name lancifolium means "lance-shaped leaves," which describes its leaves perfectly.
What Does It Look Like?
The narrow-leaved orange thorn is usually a bush that grows under taller trees in the forest. However, some can grow much larger! Big ones can reach a height of 25 meters (about 82 feet) and have a trunk that is 30 centimeters (about 12 inches) wide. When it's a large tree, it often has a crooked trunk and a wide, spreading top.
Its trunk is usually round and doesn't have big root supports (called buttresses) at the bottom. The bark is grey or cream-colored. It can look scaly and have bumpy, corky bits sticking out. The smaller branches are thin and have clear marks where old leaves used to be.
Its Leaves
The leaves grow one after another along the stem. They are thin and smooth, without any jagged edges. They are shaped like a lance or an oval, usually 2 to 5 centimeters (about 0.8 to 2 inches) long and 0.5 to 2 centimeters (about 0.2 to 0.8 inches) wide. They don't have any hairs and you can see tiny oil dots on them if you hold them up to the light. The leaf stem is very short, only about 2 millimeters long. The tip of the leaf might be rounded or have a tiny, short prickle.
Its Flowers and Fruit
From September to October, this plant grows sweet-smelling, yellow-green flowers. They usually grow in groups of one or two on short stalks. The fruit is a purple berry with a small hook-like tip at the top. Inside the sticky pulp of the fruit, there are 9 to 14 seeds. The fruit is round and about 5 to 7 millimeters (about 0.2 to 0.3 inches) across. It ripens between March and August.
How It Grows and Spreads
New narrow-leaved orange thorn plants can grow from cuttings (pieces of the plant) or from fresh seeds.
