5603.000 Melaleuca L.

Fayaz, F. (2011) Encyclopedia of Tropical Plants Firefly Books, New Zealand

Description of the genus

Trees or shrubs. Leaves alternate or opposite-decussate, petiolate or sessile, lamina leathery, secondary veins basal and parallel to leaf axis or pinnate. Inflorescence spikes, arranged in spikes or heads and pseudo-terminal or lateral. Flowers bisexual; hypanthium sub-globose or campanulate; sepals 5, caduceus or persistent; petals 5. Fruit capsules, semi-globose to globose, apically dehiscent. Seeds obovoid, testa thin.

Derivation of name: from the Greek: melas meaning black, and leukos, white, because the first Melaleuca described had white branches against a black trunk, possibly blackened by fire.

Worldwide: 246 species in Indo-China to Australia.

Zimbabwe: 18 cultivated taxa.

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Links to cultivated taxa    View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesContent
alternifolia (Maiden & Betche) Cheel
armillaris (Sol. ex Gaertn.) Sm.
bracteata F. Muell.
decussata R. Br.
elliptica Labill.
ericifolia Sm.
genistifolia Sm.
hamulosa Turcz.
huegelii Sm.
hypericifolia Sm.
incana R. Br.
lateritia Otto
leucadendron L.
linariifolia Sm.
nesophila F. Muell.
nodosa (Sol. ex Gaertn.) Sm.
quinquenervia (Cav.) S.T.Blake
styphelioides Sm.

Other sources of information about Melaleuca:

Our websites:

Flora of Malawi: cultivated Melaleuca
Flora of Mozambique: cultivated Melaleuca
Flora of Zambia: cultivated Melaleuca

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Melaleuca
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Melaleuca
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Melaleuca
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Melaleuca
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Melaleuca
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Melaleuca
JSTOR Plant Science: Melaleuca
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Melaleuca
Plants of the World Online: Melaleuca
Tropicos: Melaleuca
Wikipedia: Melaleuca

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2002-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Zimbabwe: Cultivated plants: genus page: Melaleuca.
https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/cult/genus.php?genus_id=2112, retrieved 29 March 2024

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