Melaleuca 
Stamens green or greenish white (or red, not in DR), 
6-10 per bundle, bundles 15-20 mm long, falling 
separately. Fruit 4-5 5 mm wide. Flowering: Feb - 
May; fruiting: all year. Fig. 54 
MYRTACEAE 175 
New Guinea, tropical Australia and southern Qld. 
The species has a wide tolerance with respect to habi- 
tat and in the NT occurs from the coastal floodplains 
to creek lines as far inland as the Tanami Desert. 
MYRTELLA F.Muell. 
A small genus with 4 named species in Australia and 2 in New Guinea; 1 species in the DR. The Australian 
species were formerly in the genus Fenzlia. [Scott, 1978] ; 
M. retusa (Endl.) A.J.Scott 
Fenzlia retusa Endl.; Myrtella phebalioides W.Fitzg. 
Evergreen shrub, 1-2(3) m high. New shoots 
rusty-tomentose. Leaves opposite; petioles c. 2 mm 
long; blades strongly bifacial, oblanceolate, (10)15- 
35 mm long, 1.5-7 mm wide, L/B 4.3-10, closely 
white tomentose below, spotted with glands, the 
glands often ringed by crisped brown hairs, 
glabrescent or glabrous above. Inflorescence of 
solitary flowers in outer axils; pedicels 5-7 mm long, 
tomentose. Bracteoles linear, + as long as the 
hypanthium. Hypanthium ovoid, c. 2 mm long, 
tomentose; perianth 5-merous. Sepals narrowly 
triangular, c. 2.5 mm long, tomentose, persistent. 
Petals pink, obovate, c. 5 mm long, sparsely hairy 
outside. Stamens many, in 3 series, 3-5 mm long. 
Ovary 1-locular with several ovules on a parietal 
placenta. Fruit globular or subglobular, crowned by 
the persistent adpressed calyx, hard, becoming fleshy 
and purple, indehiscent, 2-seeded, 4-4.5 mm long, 
glabrescent. Flowering: Dec - Apr; fruiting: Feb - July. 
Fig. 55 ; 
Distributed from the Kimberley to Groote Eylandt 
and possibly in Qld. In the DR known from Melville 
Is. and the Bynoe Harbour-Darwin R. area on sandy 
soils. 
OSBORNIA F.Muell. 
Monospecific. In Indonesia, New Guinea, the Philippines and nofthern Australia. [Wightman, 1989] 
O. octodonta FMuell. 
Evergreen, densely foliaged shrub or small tree to 
6 m; stem fluted in large plants; outer twigs quadran- 
gular. Leaves opposite, + sessile; blades obovate or 
oblanceolate, 31-52 mm long, 14-21 mm wide, 
glabrous; base attenuate, margin pale, slightly 
thickened, apex rounded, emarginate. Inflorescence 
terminal, of condensed, usually umbelliform cymes 
of 3-5 sessile flowers, and axillary of typically 
solitary sessile flowers. Bracteoles caducous, oblan- 
ceolate, c. 3.5 mm long, sericeous. Flower buds 
clavate, c. 7 mm long. Sepals 8, persistent, oblong to 
obovate, c. 2 mm long, sericeous. Petals absent. 
Stamens many in continuous ring, c. 3 mm long. Ovary 
incompletely 2-celled, summit sericeous. Style per- 
sistent, sericeous at base. Fruit dry, indehiscent. Seeds 
1-2. Flowering: June - Dec; fruiting: Feb. Fig. 55 
In Australia from the Kimberley.to northern Qld. 
Scattered in the DR. A mangrove, usually on the 
landward margins on sand, mud or rock. 
RHODAMNIA Jack 
A genus of c. 25 species distributed from southern China to northern NSW. About 16 species in Australia, 
mostly from coastal Qld; 1 in the NT and in the DR. [Scott, 1979] 
