Kunzea serotina

Detailed description

Erect, columnar to tightly pyramidal, fastigiate, densely branched shrubs or trees 3–20 × 2–4 m developing with time into less densely branched, open pyramidal crowns. Trunk usually single, very rarely 2–3 arising from base, 0.10–0.86 m d.b.h., with basal portion of trunk covered in numerous, curled, chartaceous bark remnants. Bark chartaceous, greyish-white to pinkish-white, heavily cracked, often crumpled, detaching as inrolled, curled, sinuous, irregular pieces, pieces often congregating in branch forks and forming deep drifts at trunk base. Branches numerous arising at or near trunk base; short and stout, obliquely ascending, fastigiate; branchlets numerous, very leafy; indumentum copious, sericeous; persistent, divergent 0.05–0.08 µm, apices curved or slightly curled. Leaves heterophyllous; seedling, subadult leaves and that of reversion shoots, spreading to patent; lamina 0.8–7.8 × 0.6–1.2 mm, red-green, pale green suffused with red, rarely bright green, linear-lanceolate to lanceolate; flat or involute, apex acute to obtuse, finely cuspidate; adult leaves, usually densely aggregated along brachyblasts, lamina 2.0–6.3 × 0.8–1.8 mm, dark glossy green or bronze-green, linear-oblanceolate, oblanceolate to obovate; strongly recurved from about ½ of total length, apex initially acute to subacute, maturing obtuse to rounded, often cuspidate; base attenuate; glandular punctate, glabrous, very rarely with fine antrorse hairs near base; lamina margin sparsely hairy, usually in one interrupted row failing well short of leaf apex. Inflorescence a compact 1–12-flowered corymbiform botryum up to 25 mm long, borne on alternate, distinctly spiralled, densely leafy, brachyblasts up to 15 mm long. Pherophylls deciduous, mostly foliose, 0.9–2.5 mm long, green to bronze-green, spathulate, spathulate-orbicular, rarely pandurate or lanceolate, margins and apex finely ciliate. Flower buds clavate to pyriform, apex flat to weakly domed prior to bud burst, calyx valves not or scarcely meeting. Fresh flowers 2.8–8.8 mm diam. Hypanthium 1.6–3.4 × 1.5–3.8 mm, dark green or red-green, drying brown-green to red-brown; urceolate to campanulate terminating in a distinctly thicker rim bearing five persistent calyx lobes; copiously dotted with red oil glands, finely puberulent to ± glabrescent; hairs if present short, divergent. Calyx lobes 5, upright, 0.8–1.2 × 0.7–1.2 mm, persistent, ovate to broadly ovate, central portion of lobe pale green or yellow-green, with margins usually cream to pale pink, surface glandular punctate, oil glands usually pink in exposed situations otherwise ± colourless, glabrous except ciliate margins. Receptacle pink at anthesis, darkening to dark crimson magenta after fertilisation. Petals 5–6, 1.4–2.0 × 1.2–2.0 mm, white, sometimes basally flushed pink, narrowly orbicular to broadly ovate or cuneate, apex obtuse to rounded, margins ± frayed to finely and irregularly toothed, oil glands yellow when fresh, when dried very pale yellow to colourless. Stamens 20–38 in 1–2 weakly defined whorls, arising from receptacular rim, filaments white occasionally tinged rose-pink toward base. Anthers dorsifixed, 0.04–0.06 × 0.02–0.04 mm, testiculate to ellipsoid. Pollen white. Anther connective gland prominent, orange often flushed rose when fresh, drying dark orange-brown or purple, spheroidal, distinctly papillate. Ovary 3–5 locular, each with 10–23 ovules in two rows on each placental lobe. Style 0.6–1.2 mm long, white; stigma capitate, scarcely wider than style, usually flat to very weakly domed, greenish-white, cream or pale pink, surface finely papillate. Fruits rarely persistent 1.2–3.0 × 1.2–3.4 mm, light brown to grey, finely hairy, urceolate to shortly-campanulate, rarely cupular, splits concealed by dried, suberect to erect, free portion of hypanthium and incurved calyx lobes. Seeds 0.60–1.00 × 0.48–0.60 mm, narrowly oblong, oblong, oblong-obovate, orange-brown to dark brown, surface coarsely reticulate.