''Phebalium squamulosum '', commonly known as scaly phebalium or forest phebalium, is a species of shrub or slender tree that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only 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 foun ...

to eastern Australia. It has smooth branches covered with rust-coloured scales, linear to elliptical or egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, and pale to bright yellow flowers in

umbel UMBEL (Upper Mapping and Binding Exchange Layer) is a logically organized knowledge graph of 34,000 concepts and entity types that can be used in information science for relating information from disparate sources to one another. It was retired ...

s with rust-coloured or silvery scales on the back.

Description

''Phebalium squamulosum'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of , sometimes a slender tree to . It has smooth branchlets covered with rust-coloured scales. The leaves are papery or leathery, linear to elliptical or egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, long and wide on a

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 ...

long. The upper surface of the leaves is more or less

glabrous Glabrousness () 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 of a plant or animal, or be due to loss because of a physical condition, ...

but the lower side is covered with silvery to rust-coloured scales and star-shaped hairs. Between five and ten or more flowers are arranged in umbels on the ends of branchlets, each flower on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

long. The

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is hemispherical to top-shaped, long and wide, glabrous on the inside and covered with scales on the outside. The

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s are pale to bright yellow or cream-coloured, elliptical, long with silvery to rust-coloured scales on the back. The fruit is a follicle about long and erect.

Taxonomy

''Phebalium squamulosum'' was first formally described in 1805 by

Étienne Pierre Ventenat Étienne Pierre Ventenat (1 March 1757 – 13 August 1808) was a French botanist born in Limoges. He was the brother of naturalist Louis Ventenat (1765–1794). While employed as director of the ecclesiastic library Sainte-Geneviève in Paris, ...

in his book ''Jardin de la Malmaison'' and was the first species in the genus to be described. In 1970, Paul Wilson described ten subspecies, eight of which are now accepted by the

Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Sys ...

: *''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''alpinum'' (Benth.) Paul G.Wilson *''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''argenteum'' Paul G.Wilson *''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''coriaceum'' Paul G.Wilson *''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''gracile'' Paul G.Wilson *''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''lineare'' Paul G.Wilson *''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''ozothamnoides'' (F.Muell.) Paul G.Wilson *''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''parvifolium'' Paul G.Wilson *''P. squamulosum'' Vent. subsp. ''squamulosum'' There are many intergrades between subspecies and it is sometimes difficult to satisfactorily assign some plants to a taxon.

Distribution and habitat

Scaly phebalium is widespread, mainly growing in heath and forest on sandstone. It is found in northern and south-eastern Queensland, eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria.

Use in horticulture

''Phebalium squamulosum'' is cultivated as an ornamental flowering shrub. The species is frost tolerant and performs best in a well-drained, partially shaded position with a cool, moist root zone.

Image gallery

File:Phebalium squamulosum.jpg, ''P. squamulosum'',

Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park is a national park on the northern side of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The park is north of the Sydney central business district and generally comprises the land east of the Highway 1 (New South Wales ...

, 19 August 2017 File:Phebalium Squamulosum buds.jpg, ''P. squamulosum'' buds,

, 24 July 2011 File:Phebalium squamulosum var ozamthamnoides.jpg, ''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''ozothamnoides'', Hassans Walls near Lithgow, 19 September 2017 File:Phebalium squamulosum subspecies gracile.jpg, ''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''gracile'', in the

ANBG The Australian National Botanic Gardens (ANBG) is a heritage-listed botanical garden located in , Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Established in 1949, the Gardens is administered by the Australian Government's Departme ...

File:Phebalium squamulosum subspecies lineare.jpg, ''P. squamulosum'' subsp. ''lineare'', in the

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7181157 squamulosum Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Flora of Victoria (state) Taxa named by Étienne Pierre Ventenat Plants described in 1805