Melaleuca nesophila

Melaleuca nesophila
Melaleuca nesophila in the Barcelona Botanic Garden
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Myrtales
Family:	Myrtaceae
Genus:	Melaleuca
Species:	M. nesophila
Binomial name
Melaleuca nesophila F.Muell.
Synonyms
Myrtoleucodendron nesophyllum (F.Muell.) Kuntze

Melaleuca nesophila, comomonly known as showy honey-myrtle, mindiyed or pink melaleuca, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to an area near Albany in Western Australia. It is an attractive species with prolific heads of pink or purple flowers in late spring and summer, is hardy and adaptable with a dense crown of leaves and as a result is one of the most commonly cultivated melaleuca shrubs.

Description

Melaleuca nesophila is a large shrub or small tree growing to in height by in width. It has greyish-white, papery bark and a dense crown which often reaches to the ground. Its leaves are arranged alternately, long, wide, flat, elliptic to narrow egg-shaped with rounded ends.

The lavender to rose pink "pom-pom" flowers appear over a long period from spring to mid-summer. The flowers are arranged in heads or short spikes on the ends of branches which continue to grow after flowering and sometimes also in the upper leaf axils. The heads are up to in diameter and contain between 2 and 20 groups of flowers in threes. The fruits are woody capsules long, arranged in roughly spherical clusters about in diameter.

Melaleuca nesophila fruits

Taxonomy and naming

Melaleuca nesophila was first formally described in 1862 by Ferdinand von Mueller in Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae from a specimen collected on the rocks of the Doubtful Islands near Bremer Bay by Augustus Oldfield. The specific epithet (nesophila) is from the Ancient Greek nesos meaning "an island" and phílos meaning “dear" or "beloved" referring to the location of the type specimen.

Distribution and habitat

Melaleuca nesophila occurs in the Gairdner River and East Mount Barren districts as well as nearby offshore islands, in the Esperance Plains biogeographic region. It grows in sand near quartzite rocks, usually in dense scrub.

Ecology

This species is naturalised in some parts of Victoria where it is considered a serious environmental weed because it replaces indigenous vegetation.

Conservation

This species is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian government department of parks and wildlife

Use in horticulture

Melaleuca nesophila is cultivated as an ornamental plant by plant nurseries, for use in gardens and drought tolerant landscaping. It is planted as a flowering shrub, or with training, as a small ornamental tree. It grows in full sun to part shade, in sandy or clay loam soils. Once established, it will tolerate extended dry periods as well as coastal conditions.