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Pimelea

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Gderrin (talk | contribs) at 21:50, 22 April 2018 (Species: correct no. of Aus. species). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Pimelea
Pimelea brachyphylla
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malvales
Family: Thymelaeaceae
Subfamily: Thymelaeoideae
Genus: Pimelea
Banks & Sol. ex Gaertn.
Species

About 150 species; see text

Pimelea ferruginea at Yallingup
Flower bud of Pimelea nivea

Pimelea, commonly known as rice flowers, is a genus of plants belonging to the family Thymelaeaceae. There are about 150 species, including 110 in Australia and thirty six in New Zealand.

Description

Plants in the genus Pimelea are herbs or small shrubs usually with leaves arranged in opposite pairs. The leaves are usually paler on the lower surface and the petiole is usually very short. The flowers are usually arranged in groups on the ends of the branches and have no petals but four petal-like sepals and two stamens. The ovary has a single ovule and the fruit is usually a nut containing a single seed.[1]

Taxonomy and naming

The genus Pimelea was first formally described in 1788 by Joseph Gaertner from unpublished descriptions by Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander. The first species Gaertner described was Pimelea laevigata, now known as Pimelea prostrata.[2][3][4][5][6]

The name Pimelea is from the Ancient Greek word pimele meaning "fat or "lard",[7] possibly referring to the oily seeds or fleshy cotyledons of riceflowers.[8]

Ecology

Some species, including P. curviflora, P. flava, P. glauca, P. linifolia, P. microcephala, P. neo-anglica, P. pauciflora, P. simplex and P. trichostachya are known to be toxic to stock.[1][9][10]

Species

About 150 species of Pimelea have been formally described, including about 110 in Australia and 36 in New Zealand.[1] The following is a combined list of species from the Australian Plant Name Index and the New Zealand Plant Conservation Network:[11][12]

References

  1. ^ a b c Harden, Gwen J. "Genus Pimelea". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  2. ^ "Pimelea". APNI. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  3. ^ Gaertner, Joseph (1788). De fructibus et seminibus plantarum (Volume 1). Stuttgart. p. 186. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  4. ^ "Pimelea". Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  5. ^ "Pimelea Gaertn". Western Australian Herbarium. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  6. ^ "Pimelea". Australian Narional Botanicc Garden. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  7. ^ Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 318.
  8. ^ "Pimelea spectabilis Lindl". The Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  9. ^ "Understanding Pimelea poisoning of cattle" (PDF). State of Queensland Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  10. ^ "Strathmore Weed". Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 2012-06-09.
  11. ^ "Pimelea". APNI. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  12. ^ "Pimelea". New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. Retrieved 22 April 2018.