''Anopterus macleayanus'', commonly known as Queensland laurel or Macleay laurel, is a shrub or small tree in the family

Escalloniaceae Escalloniaceae is a family of flowering plants consisting of about 130 species in eight genera. In the APG II system it is one of eight families in the euasterids II clade (campanulids) that are unplaced as to order. More recent research has pro ...

. It is native to

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

and

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. The species was formally described in 1859 by botanist

Ferdinand von Mueller Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Victoria, Australia ...

, having been collected from the summit of Mt Lindesay. It was named in honour of Sir William Macleay. It is one of two species that belong to the genus ''

Anopterus ''Anopterus'' is a genus of two species of shrubs or small trees. Species * '' Anopterus glandulosus'' (Tasmanian laurel) - western Tasmania * '' Anopterus macleayanus'' (Mountain laurel) - eastern Australia Australia, officially th ...

''. ''A. macleayanus'' can grow up to 15 metres (50 ft) high and has oblanceolate (spear-shaped) leaves that are and with blunt serrated margins. The juvenile leaves may be considerably larger. The

petiole Petiole may refer to: *Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem *Petiole (insect anatomy) In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, and ...

s and leaf bases are red-tinged. The white flowers occur in

raceme A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are ...

s between October and December (mid spring to early summer) in its native range. ''A. macleayanus'' is a plant of warm-temperate and subtropical rainforest from the Comboyne Plateau in New South Wales northwards into Queensland. The thrips species '' Thrips setipennis'' was recovered from the flowers of ''A. macleayanus'', suggesting it may be a pollinator. Its long leaves with wavy margins and red-pink highlights give it horticultural potential. ''A. macleayanus'' grows best in part-shaded positions in well-drained soil in the garden, with added water during the summer. As a rainforest floor plant, it requires a sheltered position when becoming established. It is resilient but can be slow-growing. It can be grown in containers, even as an indoor plant.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2852323 Asterids of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Trees of Australia Escalloniaceae