Verticordia aereiflora facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Verticordia aereiflora |
|
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Verticordia
|
| Species: |
aereiflora
|
Verticordia aereiflora is a beautiful flowering plant. It belongs to the myrtle family, called Myrtaceae. This plant grows only in the south-west part of Western Australia. It's a thin but bushy shrub. It has small leaves. Its flowers are greenish-yellow. They have cool red spots and red fringes on their sepals.
Contents
What Does Verticordia aereiflora Look Like?
Verticordia aereiflora is a shrub. It can grow between 1.0 m (3 ft) and 2.0 m (7 ft) tall. It can also spread out 1.0 m (3 ft) to 1.5 m (5 ft) wide. This plant has one main stem that branches out a lot.
Its leaves are almost perfectly round. They are very small, only about 2 mm (0.08 in) to 2.5 mm (0.1 in) across. Each leaf has a tiny dark brown stalk. This stalk is less than 0.5 mm (0.02 in) long.
The flowers have a nice smell. They grow either alone or in small groups of up to three. These groups often appear along the branches. Each flower has a short stem, about 2 mm (0.08 in) to 3 mm (0.1 in) long.
The part of the flower that holds the petals is shaped like a top. It is about 2.5 mm (0.1 in) long. This part is smooth, meaning it has no hairs. It also has five ridges.
The sepals are about 4 mm (0.2 in) long. They are greenish-yellow or yellow. They have a cool red fringe around their edges. The petals are shaped like an egg and look like a crown. They are also about 4 mm (0.2 in) long. They are yellow with red spots. You can see these flowers from November to January.
How Was This Plant Named?
This plant was first officially described in 1994. Two botanists, Elizabeth George and Alex George, gave it its scientific name. They published their description in a science journal called Nuytsia. They studied plants collected near Yuna to describe it.
The second part of its name, aereiflora, comes from two Latin words. Aereus means "bronze." Flos means "a flower." So, aereiflora means "bronze-colored flower." This name describes the color of its flowers.
The scientists who named it placed this plant in a specific group. This group is called section Pennuligera. It includes other similar Verticordia plants.
Where Does Verticordia aereiflora Live?
This special Verticordia plant grows in deep yellow sand. It is often found near areas called claypans. These are places where clay soil holds water. It lives in open shrubland. Shrubland is an area with many shrubs and small trees.
The plant's home is near Yuna in Western Australia. This area is part of the Geraldton Sandplains region. The total area where it grows is quite small, about 1.0 km2 (200 acres).
Protecting This Plant
V. aereiflora is considered a "Priority Two" plant. This classification comes from the Western Australian Government's Department of Parks and Wildlife.
"Priority Two" means that we don't know much about this plant. It is found in only one or a few places. Scientists believe there are about 200 individual plants left. These plants live on a farm. The farm owners are working to protect them.
Growing Verticordia aereiflora
This small shrub would be great for growing in a pot. It has small leaves and a bushy shape. Its many attractive flowers make it a lovely plant.
Scientists are trying to learn how to grow this plant better. They have had some success growing it from cuttings. Cuttings are small pieces of the plant that can grow into new plants. They have also grown it from seeds. Another method is grafting. This is when a part of Verticordia aereiflora is joined onto another plant, like Chamelaucium uncinatum.
However, growing these plants in the ground has been tricky. They often die suddenly without a clear reason. Scientists are still working to understand why this happens.
