''Thryptomene denticulata'' 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 speci ...

that is endemic to Western Australia. The erect shrub typically grows to a height of in height. It blooms between May and November producing purple-pink flowers. It generally grows to a width of about and has tiny leaves. It is found on sand plains in the

Mid West The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

Gascoyne The Gascoyne region is one of the nine administrative regions of Western Australia. It is located in the northwest of Western Australia, and consists of the local government areas of Carnarvon, Exmouth, Shark Bay and Upper Gascoyne. The Gasc ...

and Wheatbelt regions of Western Australia between

Shark Bay Shark Bay (Malgana: ''Gathaagudu'', "two waters") is a World Heritage Site in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. The http://www.environment.gov.au/heritage/places/world/shark-bay area is located approximately north of Perth, on the ...

and

Wongan Hills Wongan Hills is a range of low flat-topped hills in the Avon Wheatbelt bioregion of Western Australia. It is located at , in the Shire of Wongan–Ballidu. History The range was first recorded in 1836 by Surveyor General of Western Australia Jo ...

where it grows in sandy soils. The plant is quite drought tolerant once it has become established. It will grow well in full sun or in part shade. The leaves can be eaten by

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

s and the plant has a lifespan of five to ten years. The species was initially described as ''Scholtzia denticulata'' in 1864 by the botanist

Ferdinand von Mueller Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (german: Müller; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Vict ...

in the work '' Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae'' from specimens collected near the Murchison River by

Augustus Oldfield Augustus Frederick Oldfield (1821–1887) was an English botanist and zoologist who made large collections of plant specimens in Australia. Oldfield was born on 12 January 1821 in London, England. He made botanical collections in Tasmania, the coa ...

. In 1867 it was reclassified into the genus ''Thryptomene'' as ''Thryptomene denticulata'' by George Bentham in '' Flora Australiensis''.

References

denticulata Endemic flora of Western Australia Rosids of Western Australia Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller Plants described in 1867 {{Australia-rosid-stub