Melaleuca barlowii

Appearance

''Melaleuca barlowii'' grows to a height of 2.6 m with stems and leaves that are glabrous except when very young. Its leaves are arranged alternately, narrow oval or narrow elliptic in shape, 19.5–41 mm long, 3–8.5 mm wide tapering to a point.

The flowers are a shade of pink to purple and arranged in heads or short spikes on the ends of branches which continue to grow after flowering, sometimes also in the upper leaf axils. The heads are up to 30 mm in diameter and contain between 10 and 15 groups of flowers in threes. The stamens are arranged in bundles of five around the flower, with 9 to 11 stamens in each bundle. The flowering season is November and December and is followed by fruit which are woody capsules 3.5–4 mm long in an oval-shaped cluster around the stems.

Naming

''Melaleuca barlowii'' was first formally described in 1999 by Lyndley Craven and Brendan Lepschi in ''Australian Systematic Botany'' from a specimen collected near Tardun. The specific epithet is in honour of Bryan Barlow, melaleuca specialist and expert in the mistletoe family, Loranthaceae.

Distribution

This melaleuca occurs in the Mullewa and Perenjori districts in the Avon Wheatbelt and Yalgoo biogeographic regions. It grows in sand and clay loam in shrubland and in roadside reserves.

Status

''Melaleuca barlowii'' is listed as "Priority Three" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife, meaning that it is known from only a few locations and is not currently in imminent danger.

Habitat

This melaleuca occurs in the Mullewa and Perenjori districts in the Avon Wheatbelt and Yalgoo biogeographic regions. It grows in sand and clay loam in shrubland and in roadside reserves.