Correa alba
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Wikipedia links: Angiosperms > Eudicots > Rosids > Sapindales > Rutaceae > Correa alba
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Common name: White Correa
Conservation status: unknown
Etymology:
x
Flowers:
The flowers are arranged singly or in groups of up to five on the ends of short side branches on pedicels 0.5–5 mm long
The calyx is cup-shaped or hemispherical and 2–4 mm long with four lobes
The petals are white, rarely pale pink, 11–13 mm long, woolly hairy on the back and spreading more or less free from each other
The eight stamens are shorter than the petals
Flowering mainly occurs from April to June
Fruit:
The fruit is 5–7 mm long and green
Leaves:
The leaves are leathery, elliptic to more or less round, 8–35 mm long and 6–25 mm wide on a petiole 0.5–1.5 mm long
The lower side of the leaves is densely covered with woolly hairs
Stem & branches:
x
Roots:
x
Habit:
A prostrate to spreading shrub that typically grows to a height of 1.5 m and has rust-coloured, woolly-hairy young stems
Habitat:
White correa occurs in South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania
In New South Wales it grows in sandy and rocky areas in near coastal areas south form Port Stephens
In Victoria it is common in coastal heath and woodland, extending to the far south east of South Australia
In Tasmania it is common on exposed rocky and sandy areas on the north and east coasts
Distribution:
Endemic to south-eastern Australia
Additional notes:
It has egg-shaped to more or less circular leaves, erect white flowers arranged singly or in groups on short side branches, and green fruit
Wombats have been known to eat the leaves and roots
Taxonomy
Correa alba was first formally described by Henry Cranke Andrews in 1798 in his book,The Botanist's Repository for New, and Rare Plants
The Australian Plant Census accepts the names of two varieties:
Correa alba Andrews var. alba has woolly hairs pressed against the lower surface of the leaves, and pedicels 2.5–5 mm long
Correa alba var. pannosa Paul G.Wilson[8] has thick, woolly to felt-like hairs on the lower surface of the leaves and pedicels 0.5–1.5 mm long
Occurence
Variety alba occurs from Port Stephens and along the coasts of New South Wales and as far west as Cape Otway in Victoria. It is also the variety occurring in Tasmania
Variety pannosa is found along the south-west coast of Victoria and as far east as the Encounter Bay region of South Australia
Uses
In horticulture
Correa alba is a hardy species in well-drained situations and withstands coastal exposure
A position in full sun is best for flowering, but it can also be grown in part shade
It may be used to create an informal hedge or as a container plant
In food
The 1889 book 'The Useful Native Plants of Australia records that common names included " Cape Barren Tea" in Tasmania
"The leaves of this plant have been used by the sealers on the islands in Bass's Straits as a substitute for tea