Thesium confine

Description: Slender perennial with slightly woody rootstock and decumbent habit, branching from rootstock, 70 mm – 280 mm high; stems wiry, 1 mm – 3 mm diam. Leaves scalelike, closely adpressed to stem, imbricate on young twigs, lanceolate, acuminate, 1.2 mm – 3.3 mm × 0.2 mm – 0.6 mm, margins ciliate. Inflorescences terminal (rarely axillary), monotelic, of 5 - to 8 (9) - flowered spike-like cymes (with single flowers sometimes replaced by 3 - flowered monochasia), peduncles 5 mm – 38 mm long; involucral bracts usually absent; bracts ovate, acuminate, 1.4 mm – 1.5 mm × 1.0 mm – 1.1 mm, adpressed to flower; bracteoles 2, lanceolate, acute, 1.4 mm – 1.7 mm × 1.0 mm – 1.2 mm. Flowers white, tubular, subsessile, perianth tube 2.0 mm – 2.4 mm long, lobes ± 1 mm long, densely bearded with white hairs. Stamens inserted at base of the perianth tube; filaments 0.1 mm – 0.2 mm long, obscured by anthers; anthers 0.4 mm – 0.5 mm long. Style and stigma 0.5 mm – 0.7 mm long, stigma opposite middle or top of anthers. Placental column twisted. Fruit subglobose, brown, with 10 longitudinal ribbed veins, reticulate between main veins, 2 mm – 3 mm diam., shortly stiptitae, stipe 0.5 mm – 0.7 mm long. Flowering time: August to Octoberand December to January.

Conservation status: Thesium confine is listed as Least Concern because it is widespread and abundant (Foden & Potter 2005 b).