''Kunzea capitata'' is a shrub species in the family

Myrtaceae Myrtaceae (), the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All ...

. It is native to

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 ...

in Australia.

Description

The species has a spreading or erect habit and may grow up to in height, but is usually within the range of . Flowers are pink to purple, or occasionally white. These are produced on the branch ends in "heads". Leaves are long and wide, with recurved tips and long petioles.

Taxonomy

The species was first formally described by English botanist James Smith in 1797 in ''

Transactions of the Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature collec ...

'', and given the name ''Metrosideos capitata''. The species epithet ''capitata'' is derived from the Latin word ''caput'' (head), alluding to the arrangement of the flowers. It was transferred to the genus ''

Kunzea ''Kunzea'' is a genus of plants in the family Myrtaceae and is Endemism, endemic to Australasia. They are shrubs, sometimes small trees and usually have small, crowded, rather Aroma compound, aromatic leaves. The flowers are similar to those of p ...

'' in 1846 by German botanist

Gustav Heynhold Gustav Heynhold (or ''Gustav Heinhold''; 1800–1860) was a German botanist who worked at the botanic gardens of Dresden and Frankfurt. In 1828 he was in Trieste where he carried out mapping and published "Uebersicht der Vegetation in den Umgebun ...

Distribution and habitat

The species occurs in heathland and dry

sclerophyll Sclerophyll is a type of vegetation that is adapted to long periods of dryness and heat. The plants feature hard leaves, short Internode (botany), internodes (the distance between leaves along the stem) and leaf orientation which is parallel or ...

forest from the

Ulladulla Ulladulla () is a coastal town in New South Wales, Australia in the City of Shoalhaven local government area. It is on the Princes Highway about south of Sydney, halfway between Batemans Bay to the south and Nowra to the north. Ulladulla has cl ...

district northward to

Richmond River The Richmond River is a river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may ...

Cultivation

The species prefers a moist soil in a lightly shaded to sunny position. It is readily propagated by either seed or cuttings.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q6445179

capitata Capitata is a suborder of Hydrozoa, a class of marine invertebrates belonging to the phylum Cnidaria. Characteristics Members of this suborder are characterised by the tentacles of the polyps terminating in knobs. In some species these are onl ...

Flora of New South Wales Plants described in 1846 Myrtales of Australia Endemic flora of Australia