Flowers and leaves. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: Murray Fagg, near Stokes Inlet west of Esperance, WA

Flowers and leaves. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Shrub. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Common Name

Mallee Bush-Pea; Eutaxia

Family

Fabaceae

Notes

Shrub 25cm-2m tall.  Smaller stems often spine-tipped.  'Leaves' opposite each other on the stem, 0.1-1cm long, to 1mm wide,  flat to slightly concave, hairless, with smooth edges and blunt tips.  Flowers yellow; and purple, red, or brown.  Flowers pea-shaped, with five petals, two almost joined together.  Flowers single or in pairs, the stalks arisng from the bases of the leaves.

Differs from Eutaxia actinophylla in that the leaves are opposite each other and decussate, usually 1.5-2.5mm long, occasionaly to more than 5mm long, and the tips of the smaller branches are often spiny.

Description and photo (as Eutaxia microphylla var. microphylla) in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales page 392

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