Description: Erect or prostrate shrubs, with stellate hairs, unarmed.
Leaves alternate, simple, margins entire.
Inflorescences axillary or terminal, cymose, umbel-like. Flowers bisexual, mostly 5-merous, rarely some flowers 4- or 6-merous in some species. Sepals 5, minute, free. Petals 5, free, glabrous inside, stellate-hairy outside, not persistent in fruit. Stamens 10 to 25, free, divergent, slightly shorter than petals; anthers with or without a small terminal gland. Carpels 5, fused to the middle or nearly to the apex, usually with a beak formed from the sterile apex of the carpel; styles fused, arising at or above the middle of the carpels; stigma peltate; ovules 2 in each carpel.
Fruit of 1–5 cocci; cocci stellate-hairy or glabrous; seeds released forcibly from dehiscing cocci, dull, black.
Distribution and occurrence: World: 19 spp., endemic Aust.; Qld, N.S.W., Vic., S.A., W.A.
Text by G.J Harden & B.J. Mole
Taxon concept:
| | Key to the species | |
| 1 | Flowers white to pale yellow, pedicellate, in 1–9-flowered clusters; leaves mostly >3 cm long, 5–30 mm wide, flat. | 2 |
| Flowers usually bright yellow, sessile or pedicellate, solitary or in few-flowered clusters; leaves usually <3 cm long, 2–10 mm wide, with margins slightly recurved to revolute. | 6 |
| 2 | Leaves with apex acuminate; petals 8–14 mm long. | Asterolasia elegans |
| Leaves with apex obtuse to acute; petals 5–10 mm long.
Back to 1 | 3 |
| 3 | Petals 2−4.5 mm long; abaxial surface of leaves smooth in appearance, hairs with rays to 0.25 mm long. | Asterolasia exasperata |
| Petals 4−10 mm long; abaxial surface of leaves hairy in appearance, hairs with rays to 1.0 or 1.5 mm long.
Back to 2 | 4 |
| 4 | Leaves with upper surface glabrous at maturity, lower surface stellate-tomentose. | Asterolasia correifolia |
| Leaves with both surfaces stellate-tomentose at maturity.
Back to 3 | 5 |
| 5 | Petals 7–10 mm long; flowers 1-few in terminal or axillary clusters, pedicels (5−)10−20(−30 with fruit) mm long; branchlets rusty-tomentose (NWS, Warrumbungle area). | Asterolasia hexapetala |
| Petals c. 6 mm long; flowers solitary in axils of leaves, pedicels 2–7 mm long, scarcely lengthening in fruit.; branchlets fawnish tomentose.
Back to 4 | Asterolasia beckersii |
| 6 | Leaves narrow-oblong to oblong-cuneate (length:breadth ratio of 5–8:1), upper surface muricate, margins recurved. | Asterolasia rivularis |
| Leaves variable in shape, elliptic to spathulate, ± circular or obcordate to obdeltate (length: breadth ratio of 1–3:1), upper surface glabrous or stellate hairy, margins recurved or flat.
Back to 1 | 7 |
| 7 | Flowers 1-few, pedicels 2- 20 mm long at flowering; cocci beaked; from Torrington, Mt Kaputar N.P. and Mt Parlour (Armidale district), Mt Canobolas and Tumut to Geehi (NT, CT, ST). | 8 |
| Flowers solitary, sessile or subsessile; cocci rounded or beaked; south from the Mt Tomah district in the Blue Mtns (SC, CT, ST).
Back to 6 | 9 |
| 8 | Leaves obcordate to obdeltate, 7–20 mm long, upper surface densely stellate, shortly petiolate (<2 mm) or sessile; petiole when present somewhat thickened and flat, often appressed to the stem; Mt Kaputar N.P. and Mt Canobolas (NT, CT). | Asterolasia rupestris |
| Leaves ± lanceolate to elliptic or oblanceolate, sometimes narrow-oblong, 4–35 mm long, upper surface sparsely or densely stellate; petiole terete, 2–7mm long, not appressed to the stem; base of lamina often v-shaped on upper surface giving the appearance of an extended petiole; Tumut district to Geehi and near Torrington (NT, ST).
Back to 7 | Asterolasia asteriscophora |
| 9 | Leaves mostly 5–18 mm long; ovary glabrous; restricted to the Mt Tomah area of the Blue Mtns (CT). | Asterolasia buxifolia |
| Leaves usually 3–10 mm long; ovary stellate-tomentose; south from the Penrose area.
Back to 7 | 10 |
| 10 | Leaves elliptic to circular, with margins recurved/revolute, upper surface glossy, glabrous or sparsely stellate hairy or hispidulous; cocci not beaked; south from the A.C.T and the Budawang Ra. (SC, ST). | Asterolasia trymalioides |
| Leaves broad-obovate, with margins not recurved, upper surface dull, glabrous or sparsely stellate hairy; cocci beaked; confined to the Wingello district (CT).
Back to 9 | Asterolasia buckinghamii |
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