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Darwinia (plant)
 
 
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Darwinia (syn. Genetyllis DC.
A. P. de Candolle

Augustin Pyramus de Candolle also spelt Augustin Pyrame de Candolle was a botanist. The author citation used in citing botanical name he published is "DC."....
) is a genus of between 30-60 species of evergreen
Evergreen

In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant having leaf all year round. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage for part of the year....
 shrub
Shrub

A shrub or bush is a horticulture rather than strictly Botany category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall....
s in the family Myrtaceae
Myrtaceae

The Myrtaceae or Myrtle family are a family of dicotyledon plants, placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtus, clove, guava, feijoa, allspice, and eucalyptus belong here....
, endemic
Endemic (ecology)

Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a particular geographic location, such as a specific island, Habitat type, nation, or other defined zone....
 to southeastern and southwestern Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
. The majority are native to southern Western Australia
Western Australia

Western Australia is a States and territories of Australia occupying the entire western third of the Australia . The nation's largest state and the second largest subnational entity in the world, it has 2.1 million inhabitants , 85% of whom live in the south-west corner of the state....
, but a few species occur in South Australia
South Australia

South Australia is a States and territories of Australia of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories....
, New South Wales
New South Wales

New South Wales is Australia's oldest and most populous States and territories of Australia, located in the south-east of the country, north of Victoria and south of Queensland....
 and Victoria. The genus was named in honour of Erasmus Darwin
Erasmus Darwin

Erasmus Darwin , was an England physician, natural philosopher, physiologist, abolitionist, inventor and poet. He was one of the founder members of the Lunar Society, a discussion group of pioneering industrialists and natural philosophers....
, grandfather of Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin Royal Society was an English people natural history who realised and presented compelling evidence that all species of life have evolution over time from common descent, through the process he called natural selection....
. They are commonly known as Mountain Bells or simply Bells. The species of Darwinia grow to between 20-300 cm high, with many of the smaller species being prostrate.






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Darwinia (syn. Genetyllis DC.
A. P. de Candolle

Augustin Pyramus de Candolle also spelt Augustin Pyrame de Candolle was a botanist. The author citation used in citing botanical name he published is "DC."....
) is a genus of between 30-60 species of evergreen
Evergreen

In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant having leaf all year round. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage for part of the year....
 shrub
Shrub

A shrub or bush is a horticulture rather than strictly Botany category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall....
s in the family Myrtaceae
Myrtaceae

The Myrtaceae or Myrtle family are a family of dicotyledon plants, placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtus, clove, guava, feijoa, allspice, and eucalyptus belong here....
, endemic
Endemic (ecology)

Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a particular geographic location, such as a specific island, Habitat type, nation, or other defined zone....
 to southeastern and southwestern Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
. The majority are native to southern Western Australia
Western Australia

Western Australia is a States and territories of Australia occupying the entire western third of the Australia . The nation's largest state and the second largest subnational entity in the world, it has 2.1 million inhabitants , 85% of whom live in the south-west corner of the state....
, but a few species occur in South Australia
South Australia

South Australia is a States and territories of Australia of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories....
, New South Wales
New South Wales

New South Wales is Australia's oldest and most populous States and territories of Australia, located in the south-east of the country, north of Victoria and south of Queensland....
 and Victoria. The genus was named in honour of Erasmus Darwin
Erasmus Darwin

Erasmus Darwin , was an England physician, natural philosopher, physiologist, abolitionist, inventor and poet. He was one of the founder members of the Lunar Society, a discussion group of pioneering industrialists and natural philosophers....
, grandfather of Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin Royal Society was an English people natural history who realised and presented compelling evidence that all species of life have evolution over time from common descent, through the process he called natural selection....
. They are commonly known as Mountain Bells or simply Bells. The species of Darwinia grow to between 20-300 cm high, with many of the smaller species being prostrate. The leaves
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
 are opposite in decussate pairs (alternate in some species), simple, small, needle-like to oval, 4-20 mm long and 2-10 mm broad, mostly hard with a leathery texture. The flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s are grouped singly or several together, perfect, 2-30 mm long, with five red, white or greenish petals and ten stamens.

They are difficult to propagate
Plant propagation

'Plant propagation' is the process of artificially or naturally distributing plants....
 from seed
Seed

A seed is a small Plant embryogenesis plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some Food storage. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant....
 but can be cultivated from cutting
Cutting

Cutting is the separation of a physical object, or a portion of a physical object, into two portions, through the application of an acutely directed force....
s.

Many species in the genus Darwinia are threatened with extinction
Extinction

In biology and ecology, extinction is the death of every member of a species or group of taxon. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of that species ....
, being listed as Endangered
Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters....
 or Vulnerable on the Australian National List of Threatened Flora. Land clearing and grazing practices have reduced the areas where Darwinia species grow naturally. Recovery is hindered by drought
Drought

A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation ....
, changed fire regimes and susceptibility to infection by the oomycete Phytophthora cinnamomi
Phytophthora

Phytophthora is a genus of plant-damaging Protists of the Water mould . Anton de Bary described it for the first time in 1875....
 which kills the plants.

Natural hybrids are known among darwinias, for example between D. fascicularis and D. glaucophylla where these species occur together.

List of species

  • Darwinia acerosa (endangered)
  • Darwinia apiculata (endangered)
  • Darwinia biflora (vulnerable)
  • Darwinia briggsiae
  • Darwinia camptostylis
  • Darwinia carnea (endangered)
  • Darwinia chapmaniana (endangered)
  • Darwinia citriodora
    Darwinia citriodora

    Darwinia citriodora, commonly known as Lemon-scented Darwinia, is an erect, or prostrate, shrub which is endemic to Southwest Australia....
  • Darwinia collina (endangered)
  • Darwinia diosmoides
  • Darwinia diminuta
  • Darwinia fascicularis
  • Darwinia ferricola (endangered)
  • Darwinia glaucophylla(vulnerable)
  • Darwinia grandiflora
  • Darwinia homoranthoides
  • Darwinia hypericifolia
  • Darwinia lejostyla
  • Darwinia leptantha
  • Darwinia macrostegia
    Darwinia macrostegia

    Darwinia macrostegia, commonly known as Mondurup Bell, is a shrub which is endemic to a localised area near Albany, Western Australia in Western Australia....
     (vulnerable) - Mondurup Bell
  • Darwinia masonii (vulnerable)
  • Darwinia meeboldii (vulnerable)
  • Darwinia neildiana
    Darwinia neildiana

    Darwinia neildiana is a shrub which is endemic to Western Australia.References...
  • Darwinia oxylepis (endangered)
  • Darwinia peduncularis (vulnerable)
  • Darwinia procera
  • Darwinia squarrosa (vulnerable)
  • Darwinia taxifolia
  • Darwinia thymoides
  • Darwinia vestita
  • Darwinia wittweror (endangered)
  • Darwinia sp. (Carnamah) (endangered)
  • Darwinia sp. (Stirling Range) (vulnerable)
  • Darwinia sp. (Williamson) (endangered)


External links

  • Phillimore, R, Evans, R and Brown, A. 2001.