Isopogon latifolius

Isopogon latifolius is a shrub of the family Proteaceae that is endemic to the southwest botanical province of Western Australia.

Isopogon latifolius

Priority Four — Rare Taxa (DEC)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Genus: Isopogon
Species:
I. latifolius
Binomial name
Isopogon latifolius
Occurrence data from Australasian Virtual Herbarium
Synonyms

Atylus latifolius (R.Br.) Kuntze
Isopogon protea Meisn.

Description

Isopogon latifolius grows as a woody shrub with an erect habit to 3 m (10 ft) high. The new growth is covered in fine hairs. The thick narrow leaves are 4–14 cm long and obovate to oval in shape. They are glabrous (smooth) with faint veins and end in a sharp point (apex), Flowering takes place between September and December, the showy pink flower heads, known as inflorescences, appear at the ends of branches above the foliage. They are up to 8 cm in diameter.[3]

Taxonomy

The species was first formally described by botanist Robert Brown in 1830,[2] based on material collected by William Baxter at King George's Sound.[4] The specific epithet is derived from the Latin words latus "wide" and folium "leaf".[5] In 1891, German botanist Otto Kuntze published Revisio generum plantarum, his response to what he perceived as a lack of method in existing nomenclatural practice.[6] Because Isopogon was based on Isopogon anemonifolius,[7] and that species had already been placed by Richard Salisbury in the segregate genus Atylus in 1807,[8] Kuntze revived the latter genus on the grounds of priority, and made the new combination Atylus latifolius for this species.[9] However, Kuntze's revisionary program was not accepted by the majority of botanists.[6] Ultimately, the genus Isopogon was nomenclaturally conserved over Atylus by the International Botanical Congress of 1905.[10]

Distribution and habitat

Isopogon latifolius is found from Albany and the Stirling Range eastwards to the vicinity of Cheyne Bay.[3] It grows on hilltops and stony outcrops and slopes, in association with sandstone, quartzite and schist.[1] It grows in heath, scrub, or low woodland.[3]

Ecology

This plant is extremely sensitive to dieback from Phytophthora cinnamomi and is at risk of extinction from it in the wild.[11]

I. latifolius can take over five years to flower from seed, meaning it can be locally eradicated by too-frequent fire intervals.[12]

Cultivation

The showiest of the isopogons, I. latifolius can be grown in regions with low humidity and in positions with good drainage, but will die readily if these conditions cannot be met.[5] It has been grafted successfully onto Isopogon anethifolius.[13] I. latifolius is used in the cut flower industry.[5]

References
  1. "Isopogon latifolius". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
  2. "Isopogon latifolius". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  3. "Isopogon latifolius". Flora of Australia Online. Department of the Environment and Heritage, Australian Government.
  4. Brown, Robert (1830). Supplementum primum Prodromi florae Novae Hollandiae. London, United Kingdom: Richard Taylor. p. 8.
  5. Wrigley, John; Fagg, Murray (1991). Banksias, Waratahs and Grevilleas. Sydney, New South Wales: Angus & Robertson. p. 433. ISBN 0-207-17277-3.
  6. Erickson, Robert F. "Kuntze, Otto (1843–1907)". Botanicus.org. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
  7. Knight, Joseph (1809). On the Cultivation of the Plants Belonging to the Natural Order of Proteeae. London, United Kingdom: W. Savage. p. 94.
  8. Hooker, William (1805). The Paradisus Londinensis. 1. London, United Kingdom: D. N. Shury.
  9. Kuntze, Otto (1891). Revisio generum plantarum:vascularium omnium atque cellularium multarum secundum leges nomenclaturae internationales cum enumeratione plantarum exoticarum in itinere mundi collectarum. Leipzig, Germany: A. Felix. p. 578.
  10. "Congrès international de Botanique de Vienne". Bulletin de la Société botanique de France. 52: LIII. 1905.
  11. Barrett, Sarah; Shearer B. L.; Crane, C.E.; Cochrane, A. (2008). "An extinction-risk assessment tool for flora threatened by Phytophthora cinnamomi". Australian Journal of Botany. 56 (6): 477–86. doi:10.1071/BT07213.
  12. Barrett, Sarah (February 2000). "Montane Heath and Thicket of the South West Botanical Province, above approximately 900 m above sea level (Eastern Stirling Range Montane Heath and Thicket Community): Interim Recovery Plan 1999-2002" (PDF). Department of Conservation and Land Management Western Australian Threatened Species and Communities Unit.
  13. Cavanagh, Tony (2006). "Isopogon cuneatus vs Isopogon latifolius" (PDF). Isopogon and Petrophile Study Group (9): 8–9. ISSN 1445-9493.
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