Fruiting bodies and leaves. Photo: A&M. Kapitany, http://www.australiansucculents.com/

Shrub. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: Murray Fagg, Brookfield Conservation Park, Blanchetown, SA

Common Name

Pearl Bluebush; Bluebush, Hoary Bluebush, Hoary Saltbush

Family

Chenopodiaceae

Notes

Shrub to 1.5m tall.  Leaves succulent, alternating up the stems, 0.4-0.8cm long, flattened cylindrical to narrow and flat, hairy, with rounded tips.  Male and female flowers on different plants.  Male and female flowers on different plants. Flowers tiny (less than 3mm across), in pairs at the bases of the leaves, usually only one maturing.  Fruiting body yellow or pink, straw-coloured or pale brown when dry, with a single hairless horizontal wing with one radial slit.  Upper body hairy, lower body sparsely hairy.  Rare Vic.

Differs from Maireana astrotricha in that the leaves are stalkless, flowers are always in pairs, and the hairs (visible with a hand lens) are single, not branched.

Description and photo (page 274) and line drawing of fruiting body (Fig. 47-28 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~sedifolia