 Foliage and young inflorescences. Photo © I. Holliday |
Synonymy
Hakea marginata R.Br., Trans. Linn. Soc. London 10: 185 (1810)
T: in ericetis versus Montem conicam graniticam, Lucky Bay, [Bay I, W.A.], [9–14] Jan. 1802, R.Brown s.n.; syn: BM, E, K p.p., MEL 1537923.
Description
Spreading dense shrub, 0.5–2 m tall; resprouting capacity unknown. Branchlets sericeous at flowering. Leaves rigid, oblong-elliptic to narrowly obovate, flat, 2–4.8 cm long, 4–8 mm wide, twisted at base, glabrescent; marginal veins prominent; midvein prominent above and below; venation otherwise obscure.
Inflorescence a solitary axillary umbelliform raceme, with 9–16 flowers; pedicels cream-white, glabrous. Perianth cream-white. Pistil 4.2–5.5 mm long; gland a small flap, c. 0.5 mm high.
Fruit shortly stalked, obliquely narrowly ovate-elliptic, ±straight, 1.2–2 cm long, 0.5–0.9 cm wide, scarcely beaked but shortly apiculate. Seed obliquely narrowly ovate, sometimes slightly sigmoid, 9.5–13 mm long; wing extending more broadly down one side of seed body, narrowly down other, blackish brown.
Distribution and ecology
Widespread in south-western W.A., in the area bounded by Jurien Bay, Kalgoorlie and Cape Arid. Grows in heathy shrubland, sometimes in woodland, in sandy to clayey sometimes waterlogged soil, at times in association with granite or quartzite outcrops.
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 May–Oct.
Derivation of name
From marginatus, Latin for enclosed with a border, presumably a reference to the prominent marginal veins of the leaves of this species.
Relationships
Part of the Conogynoides group recognised by Bentham and characterised by a conical pollen presenter, veined leaves, glabrous perianth and fruits without horns. Barker et al. (1999) recognised a number of informal morphological groups within the section.
One of these was the Ulicina group. This group of 21 Hakea species was combined morphologically because they all have simple flat leaves or leaves which are apparently terete but when looked at in cross section are clearly angled; these angled leaves are longitudinally furrowed and often referred to as sulcate. Furthermore the group has inflorescences with 6-80 small flowers (with 3-18 mm long pistils) and erect woody fruits.
Members of the group are H. aenigma, H. carinata, H. costata, H. cygna, H. dohertyi, H. erecta, H. gilbertii, H. invaginata, H. lehmanniana, H. marginata, H. meisneriana, H. mitchellii, H. myrtoides, H. pycnoneura, H. repullulans, H. rigida, H. scoparia, H. stenocarpa, H. sulcata, H. subsulcata and H. ulicina, mostly from southern WA but also from south-eastern Australia.
Notes
Two geographically distinct races of this species seem to exist. The northernmost has proportionally narrower fruit (length:breadth = 2.4–2.6), and is possibly a resprouter. The southern population has broader fruit (length:breadth = 2–2.5), and is apparently fire-killed. Further investigation may demonstrate these to be distinct subspecies.
This is possibly another species in which the fruits do not open on death of the branch, since most fruits on herbarium specimens remain closed.
Representative specimens
W.A.: 0.5 km N of Desmond township, Ravensthorpe area, B.Barnsley 460 (CANB, PERTH); NW of Wongan Hills, P.Roberts 329 (PERTH); W of Harvey, R.D.Royce 2657 (PERTH); c. 6 km SSW of Kalgan R. crossing on Albany–Borden road, P.S.Short 2275 & L.Haegi (AD, MEL, PERTH).
Weblinks
Link to FloraBase treatment of this species for WA.
For further information and images of this species in the Esperance region of Western Australia see William Archer’s Hakea page in Esperance Wildflowers
More photographs of this species can be seen on the Australian National Botanic Gardens site.
Further illustrations
J.Young, Hakeas of W. Australia, Botanical District of Avon 17, 66 (1997).
I. Holliday, Hakeas. A Field and Garden Guide 120-21 (2005)
J.A..Young, Hakeas of Western Australia. A Field and Identification Guide 69 (2006)