Slender phebalium facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Slender phebalium |
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| Phebalium filifolium near Kondinin | |
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Phebalium
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| Species: |
filifolium
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The Slender Phebalium (Phebalium filifolium) is a special kind of shrub. It grows upright and has a rounded shape. This plant is found only in Western Australia. Its small branches are smooth and look silvery because they are covered in tiny scales. The leaves are long and thin, like a cylinder, and also have silvery scales underneath. When it blooms, you'll see pale to bright yellow flowers. These flowers grow in small bunches of three to eight at the ends of the branches.
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What Does It Look Like?
The Slender Phebalium is a shrub that can grow from about 30 centimeters (about a foot) to 1.5 meters (about 5 feet) tall. Its branches are smooth and covered with shiny, silver-like scales.
Leaves and Flowers
The leaves are quite thin, like tiny cylinders. They are about 15 millimeters (a little over half an inch) long and 1 millimeter wide. The top side of the leaf is smooth and doesn't have any hairs or scales. But the bottom side is covered with silvery or sometimes rust-colored scales.
The flowers are a pretty pale to bright yellow color. They grow in small clusters called umbels. Each cluster has between three and eight flowers.
Each flower has five sepals, which are like small leaves that protect the bud. These sepals are about 1 to 1.5 millimeters long. They are joined together for about half their length and have rust-colored scales on the outside. The petals, which are the colorful parts of the flower, are broadly oval-shaped. They are about 3.5 to 5.5 millimeters long and 2.5 to 3.5 millimeters wide. The outside of the petals is covered with silvery scales. You can usually see this plant flowering from September to December.
How It Was Named
The Slender Phebalium was first officially described in 1863. A scientist named Nikolai Turczaninow gave it its formal name. He wrote about it in a science paper called Bulletin de la Société Impériale des Naturalistes de Moscou. He studied plant samples that were collected by another botanist, James Drummond.
Where It Grows
This phebalium plant likes to grow in sandy and gravelly soils. You can find it in a wide area of Western Australia. It grows between towns like Dalwallinu, Menzies, and Katanning. It also grows as far south as the Cape Arid National Park.
Is It Endangered?
Good news! The Government of Western Australia's Department of Parks and Wildlife says that the Slender Phebalium is "not threatened." This means there are enough of these plants, and they are not currently at risk of disappearing.
