Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

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Gynatrix pulchella

Common name

Hempbush

Family

Malvaceae

Where found

Forst and shrubland, usually in wet gullies and on along streams. Widespread.

Notes

Shrub or tree to 5 m tall, hairless or covered in stellate hairs (needs a hand lens or a macro app on your phone/tablet to see). Leaves alternating up the stems, 4-15 cm long, 15-60 mm wide, bases cordate, tips pointed, margins scalloped. Male and female flowers on different plants. Flowers fragrant, reported to smell like a combination of white chocolate and custard powder. Flowers with 5 cream to white petals. Male flowers 8-12 mm in diameter, usually with a non-functional ovary. Female flowers 4-5 mm in diameter, with some non-functioning stamens. Flowers clustered. Flowers Winter to Spring. Common after fire.

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=Gynatrix~pulchella (accessed 19 January, 2021)