''Conospermum stoechadis'', commonly known as common smokebush, is a shrub endemic to Western Australia.

Description

It grows as an erect, multi-stemmed shrub, with a lignotuber, from 0.3 to two metres high. It has slender needle-like leaves from two to 17 centimetres long and 0.6 to 2.25 millimetres wide, and

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

s of white or grey flowers.

Taxonomy

It was first published in 1838 by

Stephan Endlicher Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher also known as Endlicher István László (24 June 1804, Bratislava (Pozsony) – 28 March 1849, Vienna) was an Austrian botanist, numismatist and Sinologist. He was a director of the Botanical Garden of Vienna. Bio ...

, based on material collected by Charles von Hügel from the vicinity of King George Sound. It has since had a fairly involved taxonomic history. In 1839,

John Lindley John Lindley FRS (5 February 1799 – 1 November 1865) was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist. Early years Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley w ...

published a purported new species, ''C. sclerophyllum'', but this has since been demoted to a subspecies of ''C. stoechadis''. In 1848, Carl Meissner published ''C. canaliculatum''; this was demoted to a variety of ''C. stoechadis'' by George Bentham in 1870, but has since between restored to specific rank. In 1919, Michel Gandoger published two new species, ''C. elegantulum'' and ''C. proximum'', but both of these have since been found to be synonymous with ''C. stoechadis''. In each case, the current status was designated by

Eleanor Bennett Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It is the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages. The name was introdu ...

's 1995 treatment of ''

Conospermum ''Conospermum'' is a genus of about 50 species in the family Proteaceae that are endemic to Australia. Members of the genus are known as smokebushes - from a distance, their wispy heads of blue or grey flowers resemble puffs of smoke. They ...

'' for the '' Flora of Australia'' series of monographs. There are two subspecies: ''C. stoechadis'' subsp. ''sclerophyllum'' and the autonym ''C. stoechadis'' subsp. ''stoechadis''.

Distribution and habitat

It occurs on sand and

laterite Laterite is both a soil and a rock type rich in iron and aluminium and is commonly considered to have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are of rusty-red coloration, because of high iron oxide content. They develop by ...

, on sandplains throughout the Southwest Botanic Province, and also east as far as Southern Cross.

Description

Taxonomy

Distribution and habitat

Ecology

References

External links