Cynoglossum australe commonly known as the Australian hound's tongue,[2] is a flowering plant in the family Boraginaceae. It is a perennial herb with blue, pink or whitish flowers found in most states of Australia.

Australian hound's tongue
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Boraginales
Family: Boraginaceae
Genus: Cynoglossum
Species:
C. australe
Binomial name
Cynoglossum australe

Description

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Cynoglossum australe is an upright herb 30–75 cm (12–30 in) high, occasionally taller, with stems covered in stiff, backward or downward spreading hairs. Lower leaves are lance to spoon-shaped, flat, 6–20 cm (2.4–7.9 in) long, 10–35 mm (0.39–1.38 in) wide on a petiole 2–10 cm (0.79–3.94 in) long, becoming sessile, wedge-shaped at the base, a pointed apex and decreasing in size near the flowers. The corolla is blue, sometimes pink or whitish, 3–6 mm (0.12–0.24 in) long, pedicel 2–5 mm (0.079–0.197 in) long, sepals elliptic-shaped to almost triangular, rounded or blunt and enlarging as the fruit ages. Flowering occurs mostly in spring and summer and the fruit is a flattened, oval to globe-shaped schizocarp, light brown to yellowish-brown, 2.5–3.5 mm (0.098–0.138 in) long and covered in spines of varying length on the lower surface.[2][3][4]

Taxonomy and naming

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Cynoglossum australe was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown and the description was published in Prodromus florae Novae Hollandiae.[5][6] The specific epithet (australe) means "Australian".[7]

Distribution and habitat

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Australian hound's tongue is a widespread species found growing in a diverse range of locations including woodland, grassland, sand dunes and montane forest in Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia and the Australian Capital Territory.[2][3]

References

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  1. ^ "Cynoglossum australe". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "Cynoglossum australe". VICFLORA-flora of Victoria. Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  3. ^ a b Wilson, Peter. "Cynoglossum australe". PlantNET-NSW flora online. Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  4. ^ Cosgrove, Meredith (2014). Photographic Guide to Native Plants of the Australian Capital Territory. Meadow Argus. p. 80. ISBN 9780994183408.
  5. ^ "Cynoglossum australe". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  6. ^ Brown, Robert (1810). Prodromus florae Novae Hollandiae et insulae Van-Diemen, exhibens characteres plantarum quas annis. London. p. 495.
  7. ^ George, A.S; Sharr, F.A (2021). Western Australian Plant Names and their meanings (4th ed.). Kardinya: Four Gables. p. 144. ISBN 9780958034197.