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Myrtle-leaf Milkwort

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Myrtle-leaf Milkwort photos

Scientific Name:Polygala myrtifolia
Myrtle-leaf Milkwort shrub
Myrtle-leaf Milkwort shrub
Photo: A J Brown

Other Common Names:

Butterfly Bush, Bellarine Pea

Status:

Native to South Africa. Naturalised along the coasts of Southern Australia and New Zealand.

Plant Description:

An
annual or perennial herb, shrub or small tree to 2 m tall with elliptic to broad-elliptic leaves, about 5 cm long and 2 cm wide.

Flowers are purple and white, superficially appearing pea-like, and develop in spikes at the ends of branches or between stems and leaves. Fruit is a flattened capsule with a marginal wing; appearing circular or heart-shaped to 10 mm wide.

Habitat:

Weedy shrub of coastal dunes, shrub-lands and woodlands.

Comments:

Seeds are spread by water, garden waste, contaminated soil, ants and birds.

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort Photos

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort tree
Myrtle-leaf Milkwort small tree
Photo: A J Brown
Myrtle-leaf Milkwort trunk
Trunk of Myrtle-leaf Milkwort
Photo: A J Brown

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort flower
Myrtle-leaf Milkwort flower
Photo: A J Brown

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort flowers
Flowers of Myrtle-leaf Milkwort
Photo: A J Brown

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort leaves
Leaves of Myrtle-leaf Milkwort
Photo: A J Brown

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort fruit
Myrtle-leaf Milkwort fruit
Photo: A J Brown


Related Links

Myrtle-leaf Milkwort on the Invasive Plants section of VRO.
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