Ericomyrtus tenuior

Family: Myrtaceae
Distribution: Woodland from east of Geraldton to the Darling Range east of Perth.
Common Name: No generally accepted common name.
Conservation Status: Not considered to be at risk in the wild.
Derivation of Name: Ericomyrtus… From Greek ereike, heather and myrtos, myrtle, presumably due to a resemblence of the type species to the genus Erica.
tenuior… From Latin tenuis, narrow, a reference to the slender, upright habit of growth.

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General Description:

Ericomyrtus is a small genus of four species of small to medium shrubs all of which are endemic to Western Australia.  They are related to  Oxymyrrhine and were previously classified in the genus Baeckea1.

Ericomyrtus tenuior is a small to medium shrub to about 2 metres high with a spindly, open habit of growth.  The small leaves are circular to oval-shaped, 5-8 mm long by a similar width. The white flowers are teatree-like and about 11 mm in diameter.  They occur in late winter and spring in clusters at the ends of the branches.

As far as is known, species of Ericiomyrtus are unknown in cultivation. E.tenuior could be expected to be hardy in well drained soils in a sunny or partially shaded location.  Tip pruning from an early age will promote a bushy growth habit and more profuse flowering.  It would be expected to tolerate extended dry conditions once established.

Seed should germinate well without pretreatment. Cuttings of firm, current season’s growth can be expected to strike readily.

  1. Rye B. L. (2015);   Reinstatement of Ericomyrtus (Myrtaceae: Chamelaucieae), with three new combinations. Nuytsia 25: 131–143 (2015)

 

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Ericomyrtus tenuior
Photo: Kevin Thiele – Australian National Botanic Gardens

 

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