Melaleuca relativa

Description

Calothamnus affinis is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an erect, compact, or spreading shrub with red to purple flowers in spring. Calothamnus affinis is a compact shrub growing to a height of about 2.0 metres (7 ft) with pale green, cylindrical leaves with their end tapering to a point. The flowers have 5 sepals, 5 petals and stamens joined to form 5 claw-like bundles. Calothamnus affinis occurs in the far south of Western Australia in the Stirling Range district in the Avon Wheatbelt, Esperance Plains and Jarrah Forest biogeographic regions. It grows in sandy soils and laterite. Calothamnus affinis was first formally described in 1852 by Nikolai Turczaninow. The specific epithet (affinis) means "allied to" or "akin to", and refers to the similarity of this species to Calothamnus gracilis. In 2014 Craven, Edwards and Cowley proposed that the species be renamed Melaleuca relativa but the name is not accepted by the Australian Plant Census. Calothamnus is a genus of shrubs in the family Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. The common names one-sided bottlebrush or claw flower are given to some species due to their having the flowers clustered on one side of the stem or because of the claw-like appearance of their flowers. Calothamnus species are generally medium to tall woody shrubs with crowded leaves. In most species the leaves are crowded and linear in shape, and the flowers are usually arranged in dense clusters. The petals are small and fall off the flower soon after it opens but the stamens are long, numerous and usually bright red. Plants in the genus Calothamnus are medium to tall shrubs, sometimes low-growing ground covers. The leaves are linear or narrow lance-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, usually glabrous and have distinct oil glands. The flowers are in small groups or dense spikes on leafless, older stems or between the leaves on younger ones. The sepals are fused to form a bell-shaped cup which is often immersed in the branch and there are four or five petals which usually fall off after the flower has opened. There are many stamens, joined for a large proportion of their length into four or five "claws". In some species the upper two claws are fused together and the lower ones are shorter. The stamens are brightly coloured, crimson to a deep purple or rarely yellow. The fruit is a woody capsule.