Cassinia telfordii Orchard APNI* Description: Erect shrub 1.5–5 m high; young stems green with a dense indumentum of spreading cottony hairs and scabrous gland-tipped hairs, older stems pale red-brown ± smooth, subglossy.
Leaves flat, spreading, linear, 30–85 mm long, 1.5–4 mm wide, margins slightly revolute, tip acute with a weak mucro; upper surface dark glossy green with cottony hairs when young, becoming shortly scabrous; lower surface pale green, densely white tomentose with spreading hairs and subsessile globose hairs; midrib sunken above, prominent and sparsely scabrous below.
Inflorescence a round-topped corymb with several hundred heads, appearing orange from a distance. Heads 3–4 mm long; involucral bracts 10–12, imbricate in 2 or 3 whorls, membranous, hyaline, metallic pale yellow, hooded. Florets 5–6 per head, deep cream to yellow.
Achenes dark grey or brown, 0.7–0.9 mm long with pappus of 16–25 bristles.
Flowering: November–May
Distribution and occurrence: Grows in WSF or on margins of rainforest, generally on deep clay loams over volcanics above 600m. Endemic to the north coast and tablelands of NSW.
NSW subdivisions: NC, NT
Dried specimens appear terete due to leaf margins drying revolute. Closely resembles C. leptocephala subsp. leptocephala but is distinguished from that species by its flat leaves and greater number of florets.
Text by K. Ismay
Taxon concept: A. E. Orchard 2004
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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