Kunzea ambigua

taxobox
name = Tick Bush

---

regnum = Plantae
unranked_divisio = Angiosperms
unranked_classis = Eudicots
unranked_ordo = Rosids
ordo = Myrtales
familia = Myrtaceae
genus = "Kunzea"
species = "K. ambigua"
binomial = "Kunzea ambigua"
binomial_authority = (Sm.) Druce|

"Kunzea ambigua", commonly known as the White Kunzea, Poverty Bush or Tick Bush, is a common shrub of the myrtaceae family found on sandstone soils in eastern Australia. Growing up to convert|5|m|ft|0|abbr=on high and wide, it bears small white flowers in spring. Used in native gardening, it attracts native insects. It is also used in amenities planting and sand dune stabilization.

Taxonomy and naming

It was initially described as "Leptospermum ambiguum" by James Edward Smith, before English botanist George Claridge Druce gave it its current binomial name in 1917. The generic name honours German naturalist Gustav Kunze,cite book |author=Eliot RW, Jones DL, Blake T |title=Encyclopaedia of Australian Plants Suitable for Cultivation: Volume 6 (K-M)|year=1993|pages=p. 15 |publisher=Lothian Press |location=Port Melbourne |isbn=0-85091-589-9] while the specific epithet is derived from the Latin adjective "ambiguus" 'doubtful' or 'uncertain'. [cite book|author = Simpson DP| title = Cassell's Latin Dictionary | publisher = Cassell Ltd.| date = 1979|edition = 5|location = London|pages = 883| isbn=0-304-52257-0] Its common names are White Kunzea and Tick Bush.

A pale pink-flowered hybrid with "Kunzea capitata" has been recorded from Stony Range Flora reserve in Dee Why in Sydney's northern beaches region.cite journal |last = Blombery| first = Alec | year = 1973 | month = June | title = Kunzea ambigua | journal = Australian Plants | volume = 7 | issue = 55 | pages = 133]

Description

"Kunzea ambigua" is a small- to medium-sized spreading shrub that may reach convert|5|m|ft|0|abbr=on both in height and width, though is usually much smaller (from convert|1|m|ft|0|abbr=on). Its bark is fibrous and furrowed, while the narrow lanceolate green leaves are 0.5-1.3 cm in length and 0.2 cm wide, with hairy new growth. Occurring from September to December or January, the white flowers are 1.2 cm in diameter and sweetly fragrant. The stamens are longer than the petals. The flowers are followed by small woody capsules 0.4 cm in diameter.Eliot & Jones, p. 16-17] cite journal |last = Martin| first = Rhonda | year = 1980 | month = September | title = The Warrumbungle National Park: The flora as you will see it | journal = Australian Plants | volume = 10 | issue = 84 | pages = 376–80]

Distribution and habitat

"Kunzea ambigua" is found from northeastern New South Wales, having been recorded in the Grand High Tops of the Warrumbungle National Park, through Victoria and into Tasmania. It grows on sandstone-based soils in coastal or near-coastal regions. It is a very common dry forest shrub of the Sydney region, and regenerates in disturbed or cleared areas. [cite book |author = Fairley A, Moore P |title=Native Plants of the Sydney District:An Identification Guide |year=2000 |edition= 2nd ed.|publisher=Kangaroo Press |pages=p. 188 |location=Kenthurst, NSW |isbn=0-7318-1031-7] It is associated with Scrub She-Oak ("Allocasuarina distyla"), "Melaleuca nodosa", Cheese tree ("Glochidion ferdinandi") in heath or scrub, and with Red Bloodwood ("Corymbia gummifera"), Peppermint Gum ("Eucalyptus piperita"), Forest Red Gum ("Eucalyptus tereticornis"), Woolybutt ("E. longifolia"), Thin-leaved Stringybark ("E. eugenioides"), and White Feather Honeymyrtle ("Melaleuca decora") in forested areas.

Ecology

Insects are the main pollinators of "Kunzea ambigua"; these include various types of beetles including jewel beetles (Buprestidae), scarab beetles (Scarabaeidae), flower beetles (Mordellidae), and checkered beetles (Cleridae) [Webb, G.A. (1986) Some insect pollinators of Kunzea ambigua (Sm.) Druce (Myrtaceae) near Sydney, New South Wales. Victorian Naturalist 103: 12–15.] as well as butterflies, flies, bees and wasps.cite journal |last=Benson |first=Doug |coauthors=McDougall, Lyn |year=1998|title=Ecology of Sydney plant species:Part 6 Dicotyledon family Myrtaceae |journal=Cunninghamia |volume=5 |issue=4 |pages=809–987 |id= |url=http://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/58049/Cun5Ben808.pdf|format=PDF |accessdate=2008-02-19 ] The tick bush is killed by fire and regenerates from seed. Plants can also colonise unburnt sites with ample sunlight.

Cultivation

It was one of the first species of Australian plant introduced into cultivation in England. It is a hardy and adaptable plant that is used in windbreaks and sand dune stabilization plantings, as well as gardens, particularly in Australian gardens using native plants according to principles of natural landscaping. The species attracts Australian native insects, [cite book |title=Attracting Wildlife to Your Garden |last=Elliot |first=Rodger |authorlink=Rodger Elliot |year=1994 |publisher=Lothian Books |location=Melbourne |isbn=0-85091-628-3 |pages=p. 51] and can provide shelter for small birds and the Long-nosed Bandicoot ("Perameles nasuta"). [cite book |title=Missing Jigsaw Pieces: The Bushplants of the Cooks River Valley|last=Benson |first=D |coauthors=Ondinea D, Bear V |year=1999 |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney |location=Sydney |isbn=0-7313-9128-4|pages=p. 57 ]

It can regenerate quickly after disturbance, suggesting it may have weedy potential if planted outside its natural range.

References

External links

*APNI | name = Kunzea ambigua | id=7275
* [http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Kunzea~ambigua Plantnet site] of Royal Botanic Gardens NSW, showing herbarium record within New South Wales