Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

Alternanthera denticulata var. denticulata

Flowering stem. Australian Plant Image Index, photographer Murray Fagg, Australian National Botanic Gardens, Canberra, ACT

Flowering stems. Photographer Richard Hartland, Kororoit Creek, Vic

Flowering stems. Photographer Don Wood, Carnarvon Station Bush Heritage Reserve via Augathella, Qld

Common name

Lesser joyweed

Family

Amaranthaceae

Where found

Variety of habitats, more common in damp or swampy areas, often among boulders. Widespread.

Notes

Annual herb, prostrate or to 0.5 m tall.  Stems more or less hairless, with 2 longitudinal lines of hairs.  Leaves opposite each other, 2-7 cm long, 1.5-8 mm wide, hairless or sparsely hairy, margins entire to finely toothed.  Flowers whitish or pinkish, with 5 'petals' 2-3.5 mm long, in chaffy globular to oblong heads 4-8 mm wide, the heads sometimes clustered. Flowers all year, mainly Spring to Summer.

All native plants on unleased land in the ACT are protected.

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Alternanthera~denticulata (accessed 22 April 2021)