Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

Zieria laevigata

Flower, flower buds, and leafy stems. Photographer Jackie Miles, Mt White north of Sydney

Flowering branches. Photographer Don Wood, Jervis Bay National Park, NSW

Leafy stem with flower and green seed case. Photographer Jackie Miles, Mt White north of Sydney

Common name

Smooth Zieria, Smooth-leaved Zieria, Twiggy Midge Bush

Family

Rutaceae

Where found

Dry forest, shrubland, heath, and rocky areas. Coast and ranges north from the Kings Highway.

Notes

Shrub to 1.5 m high. Stems prominently ridged, hairless or occasionally hairy at the nodes between the leaf bases. Leaf bases continue down the stems. Leaves aromatic when rubbed, opposite each other, compound, with 3 leaflets, the central leaflet 1–4.3 cm long, 1–3.2 mm wide, tips more or less pointed; margins generally more or less rolled down to the midrib, more or less scalloped; upper surface deep green, and hairless; lower surface pale green to whitish, and velvety with stellate hairs (needs a hand lens or a macro app on your phone/tablet to see), midvein hairless. Flowers white or pale pink, with 4 petals each 3–5 mm long, and with 4 stamens. Flower clusters about as long as or shorter than the leaves, 3–23 flowered. Flowering: winter to spring.

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