''Leptospermum confertum'' is a species of 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 ...

East Mount Barren East Mount Barren is a quartzite peak of the Barren Range in Fitzgerald River National Park. It was sighted and named by explorer Matthew Flinders on 6 January 1802, together with two other peaks in the range, West Mount Barren and Middle Mount B ...

on the south coast of Western Australia. It has rough bark, crowded narrow club-shaped leaves and white flowers that are pinkish in bud.

Description

''Leptospermum confertum'' is an erect shrub that typically grows to a height of or more and has gnarled, firm bark. Young branches are hairy at first and have a small swelling below each leaf base. The leaves are erect and densely crowded, mostly long and wide, tapering to a petiole about long. The flowers are borne singly in leaf

axil A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ...

s with pale reddish brown bracts and

bracteoles In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

at their base. The flowers are white, pinkish in the bud stage, and wide. 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 hemispherical, less than 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 are arranged in groups of about seven and long. Flowering occurs between October and January. The fruit is about in diameter with an almost flat top and with the sepals attached.

Taxonomy and naming

''Leptospermum confertum'' was first formally described in 1989 by Joy Thompson in the journal '' Telopea''. 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 ...

(''confertum'') is from the Latin ''confertus'', meaning "close together, crowded or dense", referring to the crowded leaves.

Distribution and habitat

This tea-tree is found on slopes and in rocky gullies along the south coast on East Mount Barren in the

Fitzgerald River National Park Fitzgerald River National Park is a national park in the Shires of Ravensthorpe and the Jerramungup in Western Australia, southeast of Perth. The park is recognised on Australia's National Heritage List for its outstanding diversity of nativ ...

Conservation status

''Leptospermum confertum'' is classified as " Priority Two" by the Western Australian Government

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and en ...

meaning that it is poorly known and from only one or a few locations.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15367726 confertum Endemic flora of Western Australia Plants described in 1989 Taxa named by Joy Thompson