Alyxia ilicifolia

Alyxia ilicifolia, commonly known as native holly, is a species of plant in the oleander and frangipani family Apocynaceae, found only in the Wet Tropics bioregion of Queensland, Australia. It was first described by German-born Australian botanist Ferdinand von Mueller in 1864.

Description

It is a shrub to about tall, but often flowering when just tall. The leaves are produced in whorls of three or four, ovate in outline, with about 50 lateral veins on either side of the midrib at an angle of almost 90° to it. The leaves may have several short sharp spines about long on the edges.
Inflorescences are branched about long. The flowers are white, corolla tube is about long and the lobes about long. The fruit is orange when ripe and sometimes resembles a string of beads, it may be up to long and wide.

Distribution and habitat

This species is restricted to rainforest on the coastal ranges of northeast Queensland above, from about Cooktown south to about Cardwell. It is usually found on soils derived from granite.

Conservation

, this species has been assessed to be of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and by the Queensland Government under its Nature Conservation Act.