Leptospermum polygalifolium, commonly known as tantoon, jellybush or yellow tea tree, is a species of shrub or tree of the family Myrtaceae that is endemic to eastern Australia, including Lord Howe Island. It has thin bark, elliptical leaves, white flowers arranged singly on short side shoots and fruit that remain on the plant for a few years.
Description
Leptospermum polygalifolium is a shrub that typically grows to a height of or a tree to or more, with thin bark but that is thick and flaky in larger specimens. Younger stems are covered with short hairs at first and have a conspicuous flange near the leaf bases. The flowers are white, greenish, cream-coloured or sometimes pink, mostly in diameter and are arranged singly on short side shoots. There are dark reddish-brown bracts and similar bracteoles at the base of the young flower buds but that are shed as the bud develops. The floral cup is usually, long, tapering to a pedicel about long. The sepals are broadly egg-shaped to oblong, long and are lost before the fruit develops. The petals are long and the stamens long. Flowering mainly occurs from August to January and the fruit is a capsule about in diameter that remains on the plant for a few years.
Leptospermum polygalifolium was first described by Richard Salisbury in 1797 from a specimen collected in Port Jackson. The description was published in Salisbury's book, Prodromus Stirpium in Horto adChapel Allerton Vigentium. The specific epithet is a reference to the genus Polygala, with the ending-folium from the Latin -folius meaning "-leaved".
Subspecies
In 1989, Joy Thompson described six subspecies and the names are accepted by the Australian Plant Census:
Leptospermum polygalifolium subsp. cismontanum Joy Thomps. has leaves x that tend to have edges turned under, white flowers about wide, fruit wide and occurs from Fraser Island to Gosford;
Leptospermum polygalifolium subsp. howense Joy Thomps. has leaves long, white flowers about in diameter and fruit in diameter and is endemism to Lord Howe Island;
Leptospermum polygalifolium subsp. montanum Joy Thomps. has leaves x that tend to have edges turned under, white flowers about wide, fruit wide and occurs in montane eastern Australia from Southeast Queensland to Barrington Tops;
Leptospermum polygalifolium Salisb. subsp. polygalifolium has leaves x that tend to have edges turned under, greenish or creamy-white flowers about wide, fruit wide and occurs from central eastern New South Wales to the southern border with Victoria;
Leptospermum polygalifolium subsp. transmontanum Joy Thomps. has leaves x that are flat and stiff, white flowers wide, fruit wide and occurs from the White Mountains in Queensland to the Hunter River in New South Wales;
Leptospermum polygalifolium subsp. tropicum Joy Thomps. has leaves x and occurs from Cooktown to Keppel Bay in Queensland.
