Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Pimelea latifolia
Common name
A Rice Flower
Family
Thymelaeaceae
Where found
Coast, ranges, and eastern tablelands, north from west of Nowra. Near Jindabyne. Possibly ACT.
subsp. elliptifolia: Rocky sites. Western Sydney to west of the Blue Mountains. Mostly north of the area covered by this key.
subsp. hirsuta: Forest. Coast, ranges, and eastern tablelands, north from west of Nowra. Near Jindabyne. Possibly ACT.
Notes
Shrub to 0.5 m high. Tough 'bootlace' bark when the stems broken. Stems hairy. Leaves opposite each other, sometimes alternating up the stems, 0.2–3.5 cm long, 1–11 mm wide, hairy at least on the lower surface, medium to dark green or blue-green on the upper surface, paler below. Flowers bisexual or female, greenish yellow, or yellow to white, 6–12 mm long, tubular, with 4 spreading lobes each 1–3.5 mm long, often red, rarely white. Flowers in 1–18 flowered heads. Bracts absent or similar to the leaves. Flowers Apr.–Oct.
subsp. elliptifolia: Leaves 0.2–3.5 cm long, 2–11 mm wide, covered on both surfaces with fine or coarse long hairs, margins fringed. Flowers 3.5–8 mm long, usually yellow or greenish yellow and sometimes with red lobes, rarely white. Heads 5–18-flowered.
subsp. hirsuta: Leaves covered on both surfaces with short fine, slightly tangled, hairs. Leaves 0.2–1.5 cm long, 1–6 mm wide, margins fringed. Flowers 4–7 mm long, yellow with dark red lobes. Heads 1–7-flowered.
PlantNET description: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Pimelea~latifolia (accessed 31 January, 2021)
This identification key and fact sheets are available as a free mobile application:
