Eremosyne Endl.

Scientific Description

Family Eremosynaceae.

Sometimes included in Saxifragaceae.

Habit and leaf form. Small pilose herbs. Plants unarmed. Annual. Leaves basal, or cauline. Plants with a basal concentration of leaves. Young stems cylindrical. To 0.2 m high. Mesophytic. Heterophyllous (basal leaves entire, cauline leaves deeply lobed). Leaves small; not fasciculate; alternate; spiral; not decurrent on the stems; ‘herbaceous’; petiolate (basal), or sessile (cauline). Petioles wingless. Leaves non-sheathing; simple; epulvinate. Leaf blades dissected, or entire; flat; obovate; when dissected, pinnatifid; pinnately veined; attenuate at the base. Mature leaf blades adaxially pilose; abaxially pilose. Leaves without stipules. Leaf blade margins entire; flat. Leaves without a persistent basal meristem. Leaf anatomy. Hairs present (of two kinds); glandular hairs present. Unicellular hairs present. Extra-floral nectaries absent.

Reproductive type, pollination. Fertile flowers hermaphrodite. Unisexual flowers absent. Plants hermaphrodite. Entomophilous.

Inflorescence and flower features. Flowers aggregated in ‘inflorescences’. Inflorescence many-flowered. Flowers in cymes. The terminal inflorescence unit cymose. Inflorescences terminal; ascending; dichotomous cymes. Flowers pedicellate; bracteate. Bracts persistent. Flowers ebracteolate; minute; fragrant; regular; 5 merous; cyclic; pentacyclic. Floral receptacle not markedly hollowed. Free hypanthium present. Perianth with distinct calyx and corolla; 10; 2 -whorled; isomerous. Calyx present; 5; 1 -whorled; gamosepalous; deeply blunt-lobed. Calyx lobes markedly longer than the tube. Calyx hairy; valvate; exceeded by the corolla; regular; green; non-fleshy; persistent; non-accrescent; with the median member posterior. Corolla present; 5; 1 -whorled; polypetalous; regular; hairy abaxially; glabrous adaxially; plain; white; deciduous. Petals elliptic; sessile; not hooded; not navicular. Corolla members entire. Androecium present. Androecial members definite in number. Androecium 5. Androecial members free of the perianth; all equal; free of one another; 1 -whorled. Androecium exclusively of fertile stamens. Stamens 5; all more or less similar in shape; isomerous with the perianth; oppositisepalous; all alternating with the corolla members; filantherous (the filaments subulate, the anthers small). Filaments glabrous; filiform, or cylindrical. Anthers all alike; dorsifixed; versatile; dehiscing via longitudinal slits; introrse to latrorse. Gynoecium 2 carpelled. The pistil 2 celled. Carpels reduced in number relative to the perianth. Gynoecium syncarpous; synovarious; superior to partly inferior (shortly adnate to the hypanthium at the base). Ovary plurilocular; 2 locular; sessile. Gynoecium stylate. Styles 2; free; simple; attenuate from the ovary; apical; hairless. Stigmas 2; dorsal to the carpels; capitate. Placentation axile to basal (axile, sub-basal). Ovules 1 per locule; ascending; non-arillate; anatropous.

Fruit and seed features. Fruit falling from the plant before the next growing season; non-fleshy; dehiscent; a capsule (‘subdidymous’). Capsules loculicidal. Fruit 2 celled; 2 locular; passively dehiscent. Dispersal unit the seed. Fruit 2 seeded. Seeds 1 per locule. Seeds endospermic. Endosperm not oily. Seeds not mucous; not compressed; minute; non-arillate. Testa brown.

Geography, cytology, number of species. World distribution: Southwest Australia. Native of Australia. Endemic to Australia. Australian states and territories: Western Australia. South-West Botanical Province. A genus of 1 species; 1 species in Western Australia; E. pectinata; 1 endemic to Western Australia.

Additional characters Corolla lobes spreading.