''Leptospermopsis fastigiatum'' is a shrub that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

to the south-west of Australia. It has narrow egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base and a small point on the tip, white flowers arranged singly or in pairs on short side shoots and small fruit that fall off when mature.

Description

''Leptospermopsis fastigiatum'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of and has thin rough bark on the older branches, and young stems that are silky at first, later

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part o ...

. The leaves are narrowly egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, long and wide tapering to a short petiole and with a small point on the tip. The flowers are arranged singly or in pairs on short side branches and are in diameter. There are a few broad, reddish brown bracts at the base of the flower bud that usually fall off as the flower opens. The

floral cup In angiosperms, a hypanthium or floral cup is a structure where basal portions of the calyx, the corolla, and the stamens form a cup-shaped tube. It is sometimes called a floral tube, a term that is also used for corolla tube and calyx tube. It of ...

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

, silky hairy and long. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...

s are triangular, about long, the

petal Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usuall ...

s about long and the

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

s about long. Flowering occurs from September to December and the fruit is a capsule about wide and silky hairy with the remains of the sepals attached, but which falls off soon after releasing the seeds.

Taxonomy and naming

This species was first formally described in 1920 by the botanist

Spencer Moore Spencer Moore (born July 25, 1990) is a professional Canadian football fullback for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. He was drafted in the fifth round, 44th overall by the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the 2013 CFL Draft and ...

who gave it the name ''Leptospermum fastigiatum'' in the ''

Journal of the Linnean Society, Botany The ''Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society'' is a scientific journal publishing original papers relating to the taxonomy of all plant groups and fungi, including anatomy, biosystematics, cytology, ecology, ethnobotany, electron microscopy, ...

''. In 2023,

Peter Gordon Wilson Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

transferred the species to the genus ''Leptospermopsis'' as ''L. trinervium'' in the journal ''

Taxon In biology, a taxon ( back-formation from '' taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular n ...

''. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

(''fastigiatum'') is a Latin word meaning " fastigiate", (erect and parallel).

Distribution and habitat

This tea-tree is found on sand plains and among rocky outcrops in the Wheatbelt and Goldfields-Esperance regions of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...

extending into the

Great Victoria Desert The Great Victoria Desert is a sparsely populated desert ecoregion and interim Australian bioregion in Western Australia and South Australia. History In 1875, British-born Australian explorer Ernest Giles became the first European to cross th ...

in western

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, growing in sandy soils.

Uses

This plant contains essential oils, including 82.8%

α-pinene α-Pinene is an organic compound of the terpene class, one of two isomers of pinene. It is an alkene and it contains a reactive four-membered ring. It is found in the oils of many species of many coniferous trees, notably the pine. It is als ...

References

{{Reflist fastigiatum Flora of Western Australia Flora of South Australia Plants described in 1920 Taxa named by Spencer Le Marchant Moore