Pultenaea mollis


Pultenaea mollis, commonly known as soft bush-pea or guinea flower bush pea, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is an erect or spreading shrub with narrow linear to elliptic or needle-shaped leaves and clusters of up to ten yellow to orange flowers with red markings.

Description

Pultenaea mollis is an erect or spreading shrub that typically grows to a height of up to with stems covered with twisted or curled hairs. The leaves are arranged alternately, narrow linear to elliptic or needle-shaped, long and wide with the edges rolled inwards and the lower surface hairy. There are stipules long with their eges rolled under, at the base of the leaves. The flowers are arranged in leafy clusters of four to ten near the ends of short side branches, each flower long on pedicels long with bracts up to long. The sepals are long with egg-shaped bracteoles long attached at the base of the sepal tube. The standard petal and wings are yellow with red markings and the keel is red. Flowering occurs from spring to summer and the fruit is an egg-shaped pod long.

Taxonomy

Pultenaea mollis was first formally described in 1838 by John Lindley in Thomas Mitchell's journal, Three Expeditions into the interior of Eastern Australia. The specific epithet means "soft".

Distribution and habitat

Soft bush-pea grows in forest, sometimes in heathland, and occurs in coastal areas south from Gosford in New South Wales to the southern half of Victoria where it is widespread and locally common. The species also occurs in the north-east of Tasmania.

Conservation status

Pultenaea mollis is classified as "vulnerable" under the Tasmanian Government Threatened Species Protection Act 1995.