Fruiting bodies and leaves. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Shrub. Photo: Don Wood, Scotia Sanctuary, NSW

Common Name

Erect Mallee Bluebush

Family

Chenopodiaceae

Notes

Shrub or perennial forb to 1.5m tall.  Leaves succulent, alternating up the stems, to 1cm long, narrow flattened cylindrical, hairless.  Flowers tiny (less than 3mm across), solitary at the bases of the leaves.  Fruiting body pink to red, dark brown when dry, with a single hairless horizontal wing with one radial slit.  Upper body of the fruiting body with hairy margins to the lobes, lower body hairless, with 3-5 vertical wings on the underside.

Description and photo (page 272) and line drawing of fruiting body (Fig. 47-23 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~pentatropis