Subspecific taxa of Phylica ericoides
Phylica ericoides is a much-branched, compact shrub to 600mm. Branches slender, sparsely covered with short, fine, grey hairs. Leaves lanceolate to linear, obtuse or nearly acute, and rounded or heart-shaped at the base, 5-8 mm long, alternate, simple with a short petiole, rolled margins, hairless above margin and midrib sparsely hairy when young, underside.with short, fine grey hairs.
The flowers are very small, 1.5-2 mm long, tightly packed into 4-7 mm wide rounded heads (capitula) which are clustered or solitary at the tips of the branches. Flowers are produced at any time of the year, ad have a strong honey scent.
The fruit is a 4 mm long, obovate, hairless purple-brown capsule which splits explosively to release smooth seeds with a basal aril, and are dispersed and buried by ants.
Phylica ericoides has five varieties:
- var. ericoides: as above
- var. montana: (Sir Lowy's Pass) with slender upper branches; longer, more linear leaves; and the whole plant is about two thirds of the size of var. ericoides.
- var. muirii: (Riversdale) with plants smaller (up to 350mm), with slender pubescent branchlets, and smaller leaves (3-5 mm).
- var. pauciflora: (Bredasdorp) with plants to 400mm tall, very slender branches and small (5 mm long) linear leaves, and smaller flowerheads (2.5-3 mm wide) and smaller (1.5-1.75 mm long) flowers.
- var. zeyheri: (Caledon) with leaves rounded at the base, a sharp apex and the larger flowers (2-2.5 mm long).
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