Citation: Lindley, J. Hort. Soc. Lond. 4:112 (1849).

Synonymy: Melaleuca brachyandra

Common name: Prickly bottlebrush.

Description:
Stiff shrub or small tree usually 2-3 m tall; bark grey, becoming fissured; branches rather flexuose (on mature plants); leaves terete to narrow-oblanceolate, sessile or almost so, usually 20-30 mm long including the pungent mucro, and 0.5-1 mm wide, margins inrolled to form a groove on the upper face, veins obscure, oil glands few, obscure.

Spike usually 30-50 mm long and 20-27 mm wide, rather open, leaves often subtending the uppermost flowers, rhachis densely villous; hypanthium densely villous, c. 3 mm long, sepals villous inside, glabrous to pubescent outside, usually 1.5-2 mm long; petals 3-5 mm long and 2-4 mm wide, glabrous inside, sparsely pubescent outside; stamens usually 9-10 mm long, filaments a rich crimson; anthers 0.75-1 mm long, bright-yellow; style 10-12 mm long, generally exceeding the stamens, paler and green-tipped.

Fruit usually 4-5 mm long and 4-5 mm wide, mouth open or constricted to about half the width.

Published illustration: Turrill (1958) Curtis's Bot. Mag. 172:t. 316; Costermans (1981) Native trees and shrubs of south-eastern Australia, p. 247.

Distribution:  Mostly in the sandy soils of alluvial flats in subarid regions of the Darling and lower Murray river. S.Aust.: MU.   N.S.W.; Vic. Conservation status: native Flowering time: mostly late summer.

SA Distribution Map based on current data relating to specimens held in the State Herbarium of South Australia

Biology: No text

Author: Not yet available