Showy eremophila (Eremophila racemosa)
Description
Eremophila racemosa, also known as showy eremophila, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with glabrous leaves, small, green sepals and flowers which have many colour variations and which change as they age.Eremophila racemosa is an erect shrub which grows to a height of between 0.3 and 1.6 m (1 and 5 ft) with mostly glabrous branches and leaves. The leaves are arranged alternately along the branches, narrow lance-shaped tapering at the lower end, mostly 18–43 mm (0.7–2 in) long and 2–6 mm (0.08–0.2 in) wide. There are sometimes a few simple hairs pressed against the base of the leaf.The flowers are borne singly in leaf axils on glabrous stalks, sometimes S-shaped, 15–20 mm (0.6–0.8 in) long. There are 5 green, egg-shaped, tapering sepals which are 5–7 mm (0.2–0.3 in) long and glabrous on the outside but hairy on the inside surface. The petals are 15–22 mm (0.6–0.9 in) long and are joined at their lower end to form a tube. The flower buds are orange on top, yellowish below and turn red as the flower opens with the petal tube having a lighter colour inside. Alternately, the buds may be pinkish to pale yellow turning light cream when they open. The flowers are sometimes spotted and pure white forms are known. The petal tube and lobes are glabrous apart from long white hairs on the base of the petal lobes and inside the tube. The 4 stamens extend beyond the end of the petal tube but shorten as the flower ages. Flowering occurs from March to December and the fruits which follow are fleshy at first, then dry, almost spherical, 9–13 mm (0.4–0.5 in) long and have a whitish-grey, spotted, papery covering.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum:
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Class: Magnoliopsida
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Order: Lamiales
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Family: Scrophulariaceae
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Genus: Eremophila
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