Agonis flexuosa

taxobox
name = "Agonis flexuosa"

---

image_caption = Flowers of "A. flexuosa"
regnum = Plantae
unranked_divisio = Angiosperms
unranked_classis = Eudicots
unranked_ordo = Rosids
ordo = Myrtales
familia = Myrtaceae
genus = "Agonis"
species = "A. flexuosa"
binomial = "Agonis flexuosa"
binomial_authority = (Willd.) Sweet|

"Agonis flexuosa", commonly known as Western Australian Peppermint, Swan River Peppermint, Peppermint and Willow Myrtle, is a species of tree that grows in the south west of Western Australia. It is easily the most common of the "Agonis" species, and is one of the most recognisable trees of Western Australia, being commonly grown in parks and on road verges in Perth.

Habit

"A. flexuosa" occurs mainly as a small tree, usually less than 10 metres tall, although it may grow to 15 metres. It has fibrous brown bark, and long, narrow, dull green leaves, with tightly clustered inflorescences of small white flowers in the axes. It grows in a weeping habit, and looks remarkably like the weeping willow from a distance. It is most readily identified by the powerful odour of peppermint that is emitted when the leaves are crushed or torn.

It flowers between August and December.

Range

"A. flexuosa" occurs in a sub-coastal strip from just north of Perth, southwards and then east beyond Bremer Bay (34°23'S).

Trivia

The genus name "Agonis" comes from the Greek "agon", "a cluster", referring to the arrangement of the fruits. The species name "flexuosa" is Latin for "full of bends", referring to the zig-zag course of the stem, which changes direction at each leaf node. It was originally placed in the "Leptospermum" genus by Sprengel in 1819, but Schauer placed it in "Agonis" in 1844.

There are two recognised varieties: "Agonis flexuosa var. flexuosa" and "Agonis flexuosa var. latifolia". The cultivar "Agonis flexuosa 'Nana"' is a dwarf form that is commonly seen in Perth as a hedge.

Cultivation

"A. flexuosa" is an attractive garden or specimen tree in temperate climates. However, care must be exercised in selecting it for small areas, as in a yard setting. Quick growing the tree produces a large amount of detritus and its trunk can become large and disproportionate to the rest of the tree.

References

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