About Pimelea octophylla R.Br.
Pimelea octophylla, also known as woolly riceflower, is an erect shrub that typically reaches a height of 0.4 to 1 metre (1 foot 4 inches to 3 feet 3 inches). Its young stems are covered in dense hairs. Most leaves are arranged alternately along the branches, are narrowly elliptic in shape, measure 3 to 18 millimetres long and 1 to 6 millimetres wide, and grow on a short petiole. Flowers grow at the ends of branches in compact, usually pendulous clusters. These clusters contain between 25 and 45 flowers, and sometimes hold as many as 150 flowers. At the base of each cluster are 6 to 12 leaf-like involucral bracts that are 8 to 12 millimetres long. The flowers themselves are cream-coloured to pale yellow, and are either bisexual or female. They are covered in dense hairs, with hair only absent at the extreme base. The floral tube measures 11 to 14 millimetres long, the sepals measure 2 to 5 millimetres long, and the stamens are shorter than the sepals. Flowering occurs mainly from August to February. This species grows in sandy soil that usually sits over rock, and is found in areas between the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia and the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria. It is locally common in western Victoria.
