Austromyrtus glabra N.Snow & Guymer APNI* Description: Bushy shrub 0.3–1.3 m high, with smooth to stringy bark; young shoots glabrous or very sparsely shortly sericeous.
Leaves with lamina narrowly elliptic to narrowly ovate or rarely falcate, 0.8–3.2 cm long, 2–10 mm wide, margins recurved or flat, apex acuminate, apiculate, lower surface glabrous or very sparsely shortly sericeous; petiole c. 0.5 mm long.
Flowers solitary (rarely in fascicles of 2 or 3), axillary or terminal; pedicels 1.5–9 mm long. Hypanthium sparsely sericeous. Sepals usually 5, 1.3–1.5 mm long. Petals 2–4 mm long, white. Stamens 2–4 mm long. Ovary 2-locular; style 3–5 mm long.
Fruit a berry 3.5–5.5 mm diam., maturing white to grey with dark spots.
Flowering: November–December Fruiting March
Distribution and occurrence: Restricted to a few populations on the far North Coast, north of Coffs Harbour. Also in SE Queensland. Grows in open eucalypt forest or wet sclerophyll forest, from 15-400 m.
NSW subdivisions: NC
Distinctive for its narrowly elliptic to narrowly ovate or rarely falcate, glabrous (or very sparsely shortly sericeous below) leaves.
Text by R.L.Barrett, June 2025
Taxon concept: Snow, N, Guymer, GP & Sawvel G (2003) Systematics of Austromyrtus, Lenwebbia, and the Australian Species of Gossia (Myrtaceae). Systematic Botany Monographs 65: 1-95.
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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