Carmichaelia corrugata

Detailed description

Dwarf, rhizomatous shrub, up to 20–80 mm tall, 1 m wide, forming a dense mat or tufts of cladodes. Rhizomes becoming increasingly stout and woody with age, 5–400 × 1–5 mm. Cladodes linear, striate, compressed, erect, yellow-green to orange-green, glabrous, 20.0–70.0 × 1.5–3.5 mm; apex subacute to obtuse, yellow to yellow-green; leaf nodes 2–12. Leaves simple, broad-obovate to broad-elliptic, fleshy, entire, green, present on seedlings and absent on mature plants, 5.5–8.0 × 3.0–5.0 mm; adaxial and abaxial surfaces with scattered hairs; apex emarginate to retuse; base cuneate to narrow-obtuse; petiole sparsely hairy, 2.0–2.5 mm long. Leaves on cladodes reduced to a scale, triangular, glabrous, 0.6–1.5 x 0.8–1.4 mm; apex acute. Inflorescence a 1–2-flowered raceme. Peduncle glabrous or sparsely hairy, green, 5–15 mm long. Bracts triangular, glabrous, pale green, 0.5–1.0 mm long; apex obtuse; margin hairy. Pedicel glabrous or hairy, pale green, 3.0–7.5 mm long. Bracteoles at top of pedicel, triangular, glabrous, green and often flushed red, c. 0.2 × c. 0.2 mm; margin hairy; apex acute. Calyx campanulate, c. 2.5 × c. 2.5 mm; inner surface glabrous, green; outer surface glabrous or sparsely hairy, green. Calyx lobes triangular, flushed red, c. 0.5 mm long; apex acute; margin hairy or glabrous. Bud green. Standard obovate, patent, 8–10 × 6–8 mm; upper surface central area purple, margin white, sometimes purple-green veined; lower surface green, margin cream-green, sometimes purple-green veined; apex retuse; claw pale green, c. 1.5 mm long. Wings oblong, shorter than keel, 5.0–6.5 × c. 2.0 mm; upper surface distal area purple, proximal area green; lower surface white, sometimes purple-veined; auricle triangular, pale green, apex obtuse, c. 1.25 mm long; claw pale green, c. 1.5 mm long. Keel 6.0–8.0 × 2.5–3.0 mm; distal area of adaxial surface purple, proximal area pale green; distal area of abaxial surface purple-green, proximal area pale green; auricle triangular, pale green, with obtuse apex, c. 0.75 mm long; claw pale green, 2.0–2.5 mm long. Stamens 7.5–9 mm long; lower filaments connate for c. ⅔ length and outside filaments free for 1.5–2.5 mm. Pistil exserted beyond stamens, c. 10 mm long; style with a ring of hairs below stigma, and sometimes a few scattered hairs on upper surface; ovules 9–11. Pod elliptic-oblong, laterally compressed, weakly falcate, black, brown, or grey, 7.5–15.0 × 3.0–4.0 mm; one valve partially dehiscent from base; beak on adaxial suture, slightly upturned, stout, pungent, 1.5–2 mm long. Seeds oblong-reniform, 2–9 per pod, black, brown, tan, or olive green, 1.2–2.0 × 1.0–1.5 mm.