Tetratheca hirsuta, commonly known as Black-eyed Susan, is a small shrub in the family Elaeocarpaceae

Elaeocarpaceae

Elaeaocarpaceae is a family of flowering plants. The family approximately contains 605 species of trees and shrubs in 12 genera. The largest genera are Elaeocarpus, with about 350 species, and Sloanea, with about 150....

. Endemic to the south-west of Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

, it is not related to other plants known as Black-eyed Susan

Black-eyed Susan

Black-eyed Susan may refer to one of several things:Flowers* Rudbeckia hirta, a member of the sunflower tribe of the large family Asteraceae* A number of other members of the genus Rudbeckia* Hibiscus trionum in the family Malvaceae...

 around the world.

Appearance

Tetratheca hirsuta has an erect, climbing habit, growing to between 0.1 and 0.9 (4–36 in) metres high. It has a woody rootstock from which arise multiple rough stems which are hairy at their upper ends. The green hairy leaves are arranged alternately, oppositely or in whorls and measure 0.5–2.5 cm (0.2-1 in) by 0.5–1 cm (0.2–0.4 in). Pink flowers appear between July and December in the species native range. They appear on stalks around 3 cm (1.2 in) in length and are 2 cm (0.8 in) in diameter. They have five deep pink or purple-tinted petals.

History

The species was first formally described by English botanist John Lindley

John Lindley

John Lindley FRS was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist.-Early years:Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley was a nurseryman and pomologist and ran a commercial nursery garden...

 in 1839 in A sketch of the vegetation of the Swan River colony

A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony

A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony, also known by its standard botanical abbreviation Sketch Veg. Swan R., is an 1839 article by John Lindley on the flora of the Swan River Colony...

The specific name hirsuta is Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 "hairy". The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...

 tetra "four", and theke "sac, box" and relates to the four-celled anthers.

Types

Three subspecies

Subspecies

Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...

 have been identified:

• Tetratheca hirsuta var. alba Ewart & Jean White, described from a collection in Woorooloo
• Tetratheca hirsuta var. epilobioides (Steetz) Diels & E.Pritz., originally described as a separate species Tetratheca epilobioides in 1839
• Tetratheca hirsuta Lindl. var. hirsuta

Location

Tetratheca hirsuta is found on lateritic gravelly soils in open woodland and heath in southwestern Western Australia, in the Darling, Avon and western Eyre districts.

Cultivation

First cultivated in England in 1843 (as T. rubriseta), Tetratheca hirsuta is rarely cultivated but has horticultural potential, for rockeries. It prefers acidic soils and sunny or part-shaded aspect. Pruning stems to just above ground level can rejuvenate the plant.