 Lignotuberous and multistemmed habit. Photo © L. Haegi |
 Lignotuberous, not yet multistemmed. Photo © W.R.Barker |
 Inflorescences: pedicels are pubescent. Photo © W.R.Barker |
 Foliage and fruits. Photo © W.R.Barker |
Synonymy
Hakea laevipes Gand., Bull. Soc. Bot. France 66: 230 (1919) ssp. laevipes
T:
[Hakea dactyloides auct. non (Gaertn.) Cav: S.W.L.Jacobs & J.Pickard (eds), Pl.
Description
Erect much-branched bushy shrub, 0.3–3 m tall, lignotuberous. Branchlets densely dark brown tomentose or pubescent at flowering. Leaves almost linear to obovate-spathulate, sometimes falcate, 5–12.5 cm long, 4.5–30 mm wide, narrowly cuneate to attenuate at base, entire, acute or gradually to abruptly acuminate; longitudinal veins 3–5 above and below, usually more prominent below; secondary veins reticulate, conspicuous.
Inflorescence solitary with 28–46 flowers; pedicels appressed-pubescent with white or ferruginous hairs. Perianth cream-white. Pistil 4.5–6.5 mm long; gland present or absent.
Fruit obliquely broadly elliptic to ovate, sometimes slightly curved, 2–3 cm long, 1.3–2.1 cm wide, not or obscurely beaked, apiculate. Seed obliquely broadly elliptic or obovate, 15–20 mm long; wing extending down both sides of body, more broadly and only partly or notched abaxially, blackish brown.
Distribution and ecology
Of wide occurrence in coastal regions of N.S.W. from
Grows in sandy soil, at times on poorly drained ridgetops, in sclerophyll forest or heath.
To plot an up to date distribution map based on herbarium collections for this species see Australia's Virtual Herbarium. Localities outside the native range may represent cultivated or naturalised records.
Flowering time
Flowers Nov.–Jan.
Derivation of name
From laevis, Latin for smooth or free from hairs and pes, Latin for foot, a reference to the glabrous pedicel which Gandoger described this species as having (but see Notes).
How the infraspecific taxa differ
Ssp. laevipes has pubescent pedicels whereas those of ssp. graniticola are glabrous. Ssp. graniticola also has a more northerly distribution, occurring in the NC region of NSW and just extending into SE Queensland, while ssp. laevipes extends along the whole of the NSW coastline. As its name suggests, ssp. graniticola is usually associated with granite outcrops.
Relationships
Part of the Conogynoides group recognised by Bentham and characterised by a conical pollen presenter, veined leaves, glabrous perianth and fruits without horns.
Within this section 12 species were assigned to the informal Undulata group by Barker et al. (1999). This group of Hakea species was combined morphologically because they all have simple flat leaves with 3-7 prominent longitudinal veins, 10-40 small flowers (with 3-10.5 mm long pistils) and decurved woody fruits.
Members of the group are H. ambigua, H. anadenia, H. dactyloides, H. elliptica, H. falcata, H. ferruginea, H. hastata, H. laevipes, H. loranthifolia , H. neurophylla, H. plurinervia and H. undulata from the eastern states and from SW WA. The newly described H. oligoneura (Nuytsia 19: 254 (2009) from the SW coast of WA belongs with this group.
Notes
H. laevipes was previously not generally distinguished from H. dactyloides , but is distinct primarily in being lignotuberous and also in the branchlets having a dark brown tomentum usually persistent to flowering time and beyond.
When Gandoger first named this species he distinguished it from two other species he recognised, H. leucopoda and H. incrassans, both synonyms of H. dactyloides , by its glabrous rather than hairy pedicels - thus the name laevipes which is a reference to this feature. However McGillivray (1973) noted that the pedicels of the flowers on the holotype were not glabrous but possessing a "subsericeous indumentum". Thus, despite its name, this species does have hairy pedicels.
Reference: McGillivray, D.J. (1973). Michel Gandoger's Names of Australian Plants. Contributions from the New South Wales National Herbarium 4(6): 342.
Representative specimens
N.S.W.: near Charleyong, c. 21 km NNE of Braidwood, 18 Dec. 1967, L.G.Adams s.n. (CANB, K, L, NSW, US); Wingello, Dec. 1917, J.L.Boorman (NSW 126449); 0.8 km WSW of Zig Zag Railway turnoff on Bell–Lithgow road, L.Haegi 3538 (AD, MEL, NSW); top of Judge Dowling Ra., c. 5 km SW of Bucketty, D.J.McGillivray 1225 (NSW).
Weblinks
Link to PlantNET treatment.
Further information about growing this subspecies, or possibly H. dactyloides , together with an image of the inflorescence (as H. dactyloides ) can be found on the Australian Plants pages at http://asgap.org.au/hakea4.html