Actinotus helianthi
Species of flowering plant / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Actinotus helianthi?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Actinotus helianthi, known as the flannel flower, is a common species of flowering plant native to the bushland around Sydney. It was named and first described by the French botanist Jacques Labillardière in his Novae Hollandiae Plantarum Specimen the first general flora of Australia. According to historian Edward Duyker Labillardière could not have collected the type specimen personally and might have received it from Jean-Baptiste Leschenault de La Tour botanist on the expedition of Nicolas Baudin or another early French visitor to New South Wales.[1]
Actinotus helianthi | |
---|---|
At Henry Head Track, Botany Bay National Park | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Apiales |
Family: | Apiaceae |
Genus: | Actinotus |
Species: | A. helianthi |
Binomial name | |
Actinotus helianthi | |
Occurrence data from AVH |
Despite its appearance, it is not a member of the daisy family but rather a species of the Apiaceae (formerly Mackinlayaceae) family, the same family as the carrot. Its generic name, meaning "furnished with rays", is derived from the Greek stem aktin-/ακτιν- "ray" or "spoke of a wheel" or "sunbeam",[2][3] while its specific epithet is derived from its resemblance to the genus Helianthus.[4] An iconic Sydney plant, its floral display has horticultural appeal which has seen limited use in the home garden and cut flower industry. It grows alongside the related lesser flannel flower (A. minor).