General Description:

Corynanthera is a monotypic genus comprising the single species Corynanthera flava which was first described in 1979¹. The genus is closely related to Micromyrtus and is now regarded as Micromyrtus flava in Western Australia².  However, as the former name is still current in the Australian Plant Census (which ANPSA accepts as the Authority on plant taxonomy), Corynanthera flava is accepted here.

Corynanthera flava is a small to medium shrub from 0.5 to 2 metres in height.  It has small, narrowly elliptical leaves about 1.4 to 4 mm long.  The small, yellow flowers are about 4 mm long and occur from the leaf axils towards the ends of the branches. The flowers are usually seen in spring through to summer.

Golden Clusters is more or less unknown in cultivation although it has been used commercially as a cut flower by means of controlled wild-picking³. Limited records suggest plants prefer sandy soils in a sunny position. They respond to light pruning to promote branching and leading to better flowering habit.

Further information on the taxonomy of the genus Corynanthera and related plants can be found in Geraldton Wax and its Relatives – Background.

Seed germinates well without pretreatment and cuttings of firm, current season’s growth may also be successful⁴.

1. Green, J.W. (21 December 1979), Corynanthera, a new genus of Myrtaceae (Subfamily Leptospermoideae, Tribe Chamelaucieae). Nuytsia 2(6) : 368-374
2. Rye, B.L1 and Wilson, P.G. (22 December 2022), Reduction of Corynanthera to the synonymy of Micromyrtus (Myrtaceae: Chamelaucieae: Micromyrtinae). Nuytsia (33) : 321-324
3. Western Australian Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (25 July 2016), Golden cascade for cutflower production.
   
4. Tan, B. and Hariyono, K (2003), Domestication of ‘Golden Cascade’. Australian Plants, Vol.22 No.175