Myoporum insulare

Common Boobialla
Myoporum insulare at Black Rock, Victoria
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Scrophulariaceae
Genus:	Myoporum
Species:	M. insulare
Binomial name
Myoporum insulare R.Br.[1]
Synonyms
Bertolonia glandulosa Spin Myoporum adscendens R.Br. Myoporum glandulosum (Spin) Spin Myoporum mucronulatum A.DC. Myoporum serratum var. glandulosum (Spin) Benth. Myoporum serratum var. obovatum Benth. Myoporum tasmanicum A.DC. Myoporum tetrandrum var. adscendens (R.Br.) Myoporum tetrandrum var. glandulosum (Spin) Domin

Myoporum insulare is a shrub or small tree which occurs on dunes and coastal cliffs in Australia.^[2] Common names include Common Boobialla, Boobialla, Native Juniper and, in Western Australia, Blueberry Tree.^[1][3]

It has thick, smooth green leaves which are 3 to 9 cm long and 7 to 22 mm in width with edges that are either untoothed or toothed toward the apex. White flowers with purple spots appear in the leaf axils in clusters of 3 to 8 and are 6 to 8 mm in diameter.^[4] Peak flowering times are July to February in Western Australia and October to December in south-eastern Australia.^[2][3] The smooth, rounded fruits are purple to black and 4.5 to 9 mm in diameter.^[4]

The species was first formally described by botanist Robert Brown in Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae in 1810.^[1]

Distribution

Myoporum insulare occurs in New South Wales,^[4] Victoria,^[4] Tasmania,^[4] South Australia^[5] and Western Australia.^[3] In New South Wales it occurs from Eden southwards, although an isolated occurrence was recorded much further north on Brush Island.^[4]

Cultivation

Myoporum insulare may be used as a fast growing hedge or windbreak species, and withstands coastal winds and drought.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Myoporum insulare". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. http://www.anbg.gov.au/cgi-bin/apni?taxon_id=34640. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Costermans, L. (1981). Native Trees and Shrubs of South-eastern Australia. Australia: Rigby. ISBN 072701403x. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Myoporum insulare". FloraBase. Department of Environment and Conservation, Government of Western Australia. http://florabase.dec.wa.gov.au/browse/profile/7291. .
4. ^ ^{a b c d e f} New South Wales Flora Online: Myoporum insulare by R.J. Chinnock, Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust, Sydney, Australia
5. ^ "Myoporum insulare". Electronic Flora of South Australia Fact Sheet. State Herbarium of South Australia. http://www.flora.sa.gov.au/cgi-bin/texhtml.cgi?form=speciesfacts&family=Myoporaceae&genus=Myoporum&species=insulare. Retrieved 2008-05-29. 
6. ^ Cochrane, G.R., Fuhrer, B.A., Rotherdam, E.M., Simmons, J.& M. and Willis, J.H. (1980). Flowers and Plants of Victoria and Tasmania. A.H. & A.W. Reed. ISBN 0589502565.