Victorian christmas bush

Description

Prostanthera lasianthos is the largest member of the mint bush genus Prostanthera. Highly variable in habit, it ranges from a 10-metre-high (30 ft) tree in sheltered forest to a 2-metre-high (7 ft) shrub in exposed montane areas. Arranged oppositely (arising in pairs) along the stems on 0.6–1 cm long petioles, the dark green ovate leaves are 4 to 12 cm (sometimes 15 cm ) long and about 10-3.2 cm wide with a tapering acute apex. The leaf undersurface is paler. The flowers appear anywhere from November to March, and are arranged in a terminal botryoid, branched-botryoid or panicle.Mauve-flowered shrubs are often encountered at higher altitudes.Having a fragrance akin to honey,the flower is composed of a 4–5 mm long calyx with a 2–3 mm long calyx tube. The white to pale mauve corolla is 10–15 mm long, and has purple spots in its throat