About Maireana trichoptera (Black) Paul G.Wilson
Maireana trichoptera is an erect, perennial shrub that typically grows up to 50 cm (20 in) tall, and has branches covered in woolly hairs. Its leaves are fleshy, semiterete or narrowly club-shaped, 5–12 mm (0.20–0.47 in) long, and covered with fine, soft hairs. The flowers are bisexual, arranged singly, and sometimes crowded in spikes at the ends of branches. The fruiting perianth is about 10–12 mm (0.39–0.47 in) long, mostly covered with soft hairs across most of its upper surface. It has a tube around 4 mm (0.16 in) high that is constricted in the middle; the lower half of the tube expands into a fleshy, hollow stalk that encloses the receptacle. The perianth wing is thin, around 10 mm (0.39 in) in diameter, covered with soft hairs, and has a single slit. Maireana trichoptera is widespread across western New South Wales, western Victoria, South Australia, temperate Western Australia, and the southern part of the Northern Territory. In western New South Wales, it is widespread and usually grows on lighter soils. In Victoria, it occurs on deep sand or heavier loamy soils alongside belah (Casuarina pauper). In the Northern Territory, it grows on gravelly rises, low hills and breakaways.
