#leucopogon

[botanybyyen]

This weeks microscopy features Styphelia (Leucopogon) ericoides (Ericaceae), aka the pink beard heath! This is a widespread shrub of up to 2m high that can be found in heathlands across Victoria. It has typical beard-heath flowers that are tubular are densly hairy (bearded) on the inside. The flowers are small (1-1.5mm long), creamy-white with pink tips. They’re gorgeous little flowers, a joy to photograph!

Also- shoutout to the venation on the underside of the leaves because the parallel lines are just so pretty.

[chlorophyll-and-chitin]

Leucopogon virgatus

18-SEP-2025

Cranbourne Botanic Gardens, Melbourne, Vic

[wenbochenphoto]

Leucopogon verticillatus is a tall understory shrub found in the wet forests of SW Western Australia. It looks like a bamboo from distance but with pink, tube-shaped flowers crowded along spikes in leaf axils on the end of branches. Very elegant.

[drhoz]

#3589 - Leucopogon pulchellus - Beautiful Beard-heath

Specifically 'beautiful little beard-heath'.

A small shrub, growing up to 1 meter tall, endemic to the SW. It mainly grows in lateritic or granitic soil, and given the soil here in Kalamunda National Park was ALL laterite or granite, that fits.

Kalamunda NP, Perth

[botanybyyen]

This weeks microscopy features Leucopogon virgatus var. brevifolous (Ericaceae)! This pecies is endangered in Victoria and ocurrs in a relatively small range of heathland in the west of the state (it occurs outside the state, too!). It’s a small shrub to 50cm and has tiny flowers (4-10mm long). The petals are super hairy on their inner face (described as being ‘densly bearded within’, hence Leucopogons being called ‘beard heaths’!)

[drhoz]

#1764 - Leucopogon parviflorus - Coast Beard-Heath

AKA Native Currant

Native to most Australian coastlines, New Zealand, and the Chatham Islands, where it happily grows on granite, limestone, sand dunes and heath. Rarely found more than 500m from the shoreline. In this case it was granite overlooking Smiths Beach, Yallingup. 

It can grow up to 5m high, although wind-pruning can keep it much shorter, and flowers year-round. Oddly, the fruit turns brilliant white when ripe, and they are edible even if mostly seed.