Grevillea saccata

Summary

Grevillea saccata, commonly known as pouched grevillea,[1] is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a low, spreading to diffuse, scrambling or trailing shrub with linear to oblong or egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, and small clusters of red and orange flowers with a lime-green style.

Grevillea saccata
In the Australian National Botanic Gardens

Priority Four — Rare Taxa (DEC)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Genus: Grevillea
Species:
G. saccata
Binomial name
Grevillea saccata

Description edit

Grevillea saccata is a diffuse, scrambling or trailing shrub that typically grows to between 0.25 to 0.5 m (9.8 in to 1 ft 7.7 in) in height. Its leaves are linear to oblong or egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, mostly 10 to 50 mm (0.39 to 1.97 in) long and 1 to 5 mm (0.039 to 0.197 in) wide. The upper surface of the leaves is hairy, the edges are turned down or rolled under, and the lower surface is covered with shaggy hairs. The flowers are arranged in small clusters in leaf axils or on the ends of branches on a rachis 1–2 mm (0.039–0.079 in) long, and are red and orange with a lime-green style, the pistil 7–9 mm (0.28–0.35 in) long. Flowering occurs from June to November and the fruit is a softly-hairy, oval follicle 13–16 mm (0.51–0.63 in) long.[1][3][4]

This grevillea is similar to G. fasciculata, G. crassifolia and G. depauperata.[3]

Taxonomy edit

This species was formally described in 1870 by English botanist George Bentham in Flora Australiensis.[5][6] The specific epithet (saccata) is a Latin word meaning "pouched", referring to the base of the flowers.[4][7]

Distribution edit

Pouched grevillea grows in woodland or open heath, sometimes in swampy places, in sandy to clayey soils on laterite and is restricted to the area between Mullering Brook in Badgingarra National Park, Dandaragan and just north of the Hill River, in the Geraldton Sandplains and the Swan Coastal Plain bioregions of south-western Western Australia.[3][1]

Conservation status edit

Grevillea saccata is listed as "Priority Four" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions,[1] meaning that it is rare or near threatened.[8]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e "Grevillea saccata". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  2. ^ "Grevillea saccata". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "Grevillea saccata". Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment: Canberra. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  4. ^ a b Wrigley, John W.; Fagg, Murray A. (1991). Banksias, waratahs & grevilleas : and all other plants in the Australian Proteaceae family. North Ryde, NSW, Australia: Angus & Robertson. p. 325. ISBN 0207172773.
  5. ^ "Grevillea saccata". APNI. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  6. ^ Bentham, George; von Mueller, Ferdinand (1870). Flora Australiensis. Vol. 5. London: Lovell Reeve & Co. pp. 450–451. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  7. ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 300. ISBN 9780958034180.
  8. ^ "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 10 January 2023.