Flowering stems. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Plant. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Flowers and leaves. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: Murray Fagg, near Cowra, NSW

Fruiting bodies and leaves. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: Murray Fagg, near Cowra, NSW

Common Name

Tar Vine, Tarvine

Family

Nyctaginaceae

Notes

Perennial forb, prostrate to erect, stems to 1m long or more. Leaves opposite each other, 1-4cm long, 5-20mm wide, flat, hairy, sometimes sticky, edges entire or with small teeth, tips pointed, blunt, or notched.  Flowers sometimes small (less than 3mm across) pink, white or mauve, tubular, with 5 lobes, solitary or in clusters of usually 2-10 flowers on stems arising from the bases of the leaves and/or the ends of the stems. 

Differs from Boerhavia coccinea in that the stems are hairless or sparsely sticky hairy with hairs less than 0.5mm long.

Description and photo (as Boerhavia diffusa)  in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales pages 289-290

PlantNET description:   http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Boerhavia~dominii