Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

Gonocarpus elatus

Fruiting stems. Photographer Don Wood, Australian National Botanic Gardens, Canberra, ACT

Flowering and seeding stems. Australian Plant Image Index, photographer Alexander Schmidt-Lebuhn, Koorawatha Nature Reserve south of Cowra

Plant. Photogtrapher Richard Hartland, Kooyoora State Park west of Bridgewater on Loddon, Vic

Common name

Tall raspwort, Hairy raspweed

Family

Haloragaceae

Where found

Open situations and rocky sites. Western Slopes. ACT. Tablelands north of  the ACT. Occasionally elsewhere.

Notes

Perennial herb or subshrub to 0.6 m high. Stems slightly 4–5 ribbed, densely covered with long, stiff, spreading hairs. Leaves alternating up the stems, occasionally the very lowest opposite each other, 1–4 cm long, 2–8 mm wide, margins rolled down, and more or less entire, or toothed only towards the tips, surfaces densely hairy with long spreading hairs. Flowers reddish brown, with 4 hooded petals each 2.1–3 mm long, and 8 stamens. Flowers in spike-like clusters. Flowers Oct.–Jan. Seed cases globular to oval, 1–1.5 mm long, 8-ribbed, smooth to warty. (needs a hand lens or a macro app on your phone/tablet to see).

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=Gonocarpus~elatus  (accessed 22 January, 2021)