Fruting bodies. Photo: Russell Best, Murray Sunset National Park, Vic

Plant. Photo: Russell Best, Murray Sunset National Park, Vic

Common Name

Black Cotton Bush

Family

Chenopodiaceae

Notes

Shrub or perennial forb to 50cm tall. Leaves succulent, alternating up the stems, 0.5-1m long, narrow cylindrical, hairless. Flowers tiny (less than 3mm across), solitary at the bases of the leaves. Fruiting body pink to white, drying dark brown to black, hairless, with a single horizontal wing with one radial slit.  Endangered in SA.

Description (page 267), photo (page 266) and line drawing of fruiting body (Fig. 47-9 page 271) in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales

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