Bosistoa floydii

Description

Bosistoa floydii, known as the five-leaf bosistoa or five-leaf bonewood is a rainforest tree found in north eastern New South Wales, Australia. A member of the citrus family, it is rare plant, with a ROTAP rating of 2RCi The tree was first described in 1977 by Thomas Gordon Hartley. The generic name Bosistoa honours the name of Joseph Bosisto, a manufacturer of essential oils. The specific epithet floydii honours the eminent Australian rainforest botanist Alexander Floyd. Bosistoa floydii grows as a small tree with a spreading crown which may reach 15–20 m (49–66 ft) in height. The trunk is buttressed and can reach a diameter of 75 cm (30 in). The bark is grey. The leaves are arranged oppositely on the thick green or fawn branches and are pinnate - made up of five (rarely seven) roughly spear shaped glossy leaflets, which measure 1.5–3.5 cm (0.59–1.38 in) wide and 6.5–16 cm (2.6–6.3 in) long with a pointed apex. The leaves have prominent oil glands. Appearing in October and November, the tiny white flowers are arranged in creamy white panicles which are terminal or near terminal and reach 20 cm (7.9 in) in length, The flowers themselves have five sepals measuring 1 mm long, and five petals ovals 3 to 5 mm long. Flowering is followed by one or rarely two small warty woody yellow-brown fruit which ripen in February. It is a rare species, restricted to two river valleys in Northern New South Wales, the Orara and Richmond River valleys. It grows in subtropical rainforest on basalt or rich alluvial soils. Also found near Comboyne.