Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

Wikstroemia indica

Flower and leaves. Australian Plant Image Index, Australian Tropical Rainforest key, photographer Murray Fagg, Urunga, south of Coffs Harbour.

Flowering branches. Australian Plant Image Index, Australian Tropical Rainforest key, photographer unknown

Fruit and leaves. Australian Plant Image Index, Australian Tropical Rainforest key, photographer unknown

Common name

Bootlace Bush, Tie Bush 

Family

Thymelaeaceae

Where found

Forest, shrubland, and near streams.Coastal mainly north from the Sydney area. Occasionally farther south. 

Notes

Tree or shrub to about 2 m high. Fruit fleshy. Bark tough, 'bootlace', pulling away in strips. Stems hairless or sparsely hairy, later smooth and shiny. Leaves opposite each other, rarely almost opposite each other, 2–6 cm long, 10–26 mm wide, hairless, upper surface dark green and glossy, lower surface glaucous and dull. Flowers greenish yellow to white, 8–10 mm long, appearing tubular, with 4 sepals each 2-4 mm long, 0 petals. Flower heads few-flowered, to 30 mm long, not surrounded by bracts. Fruit red, 5–10 mm long. Fruit and leaves poisonous.

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Wikstroemia~indica (accessed 12 February, 2021)