Sticky Hopbush (Dodonaea viscosa)

Olive Pink Botanic Garden

OPBG FloraBean Tree Bush Hibiscus Bush Plum Caper Bush / Wild Passionfruit Dead Finish Ghost Gum Heart-leaved Frankenia Krichauff Ranges Fuchsia Mulga Needlewood Pink Fire-bush Potato Bush Prickly Wattle Red-Bud Mallee Shrubby Fox-tail (Ptilotus whitei) Sticky Hopbush (Dodonaea viscosa) Sturt’s Desert Rose Tall Saltbush Wild Tomato Wire-Leaf Mistletoe

Dodonaea viscosa is a variable plant over most of Australia and off-shore Australian islands, including some of our surrounding neighbours such as northern New Zealand, New Guinea, West Papau and New Caledonia. There are several subspecies, that are recognised through the difference in the appearance of the leaf.

Commonly known in Central Australia as the Sticky Hopbush (that include some variable spelling such as Sticky Hop-bush and Sticky Hop Bush), being a widespread plant, there are a number of other common names are Hopbush, Broad Leaf Hopbush, Narrow Leaf Hopbush, Giant Hopbush, Sticky Hopbush, Native Hop Bush, Candlewood, Soapwood, Switchsorrel, Wedge Leaf Hopbush and Native Hop.

The leaves of Dodonaea viscosa are simple, highly variable in shape and size, varying from elliptic-linear to obovate / cuneate, and approximately 15 cm long and 4 cm wide. The margins are irregularly toothed or entire, the colour of the leaves vary from light to dark green (dull to glossy) above and paler below. The leaves and stems can have distinctive pustules or glands and the leaves are often sticky.

The Dodonaea spp. have male and female flowers, that are usually carried on different plants (dioecious). Both male and female flowers are inconspicuous and are carried in cymose-inflorescences. Flowers have 4 to 7 sepals and petals are absent. Male flowers have up to 16 stamens. Female flowers have 1 carpel. Flowers are a mix of cream to green with some brown tones. In this species, flowers are in terminal panicles; yellow to creamy-green with each flower on a pedicel to 9 mm long.³

The fruit of Dodonaea viscosa are more conspicuous than the flowers, with a 2-4-winged papery to leathery capsule. These ripen to purple-red in colour and are about 2 cm long and wide. A hard-coated seed is held in each wing. Unfertilized flowers will produce capsules without seeds. In this species, the fruit is up to 30 mm long by 30 mm wide, papery and hairless. Spring is the flowering period. At this time, although they are inconspicuous, the male flowers sometimes attract honey bees in large numbers.³

It is a tall multi-stemmed shrub that can grow up to 4 metres (sometimes higher), with a spread of 2 metres.

Once of the insect species you can find on the Dodonaea viscosa is the Ground Shield Bug (Choerocoris paganus).

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• Scientific classification
• Kingdom: Plantae
• Phylum: Charophyta
• Class: Equisetopsida
• Subclass: Magnoliidae
• Superorder: Rosanae
• Order: Sapindales
• Family: Sapindaceae
• Genus: Dodonaea
• Species: Dodonaea viscosa

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OPBG FloraBean Tree Bush Hibiscus Bush Plum Caper Bush / Wild Passionfruit Dead Finish Ghost Gum Heart-leaved Frankenia Krichauff Ranges Fuchsia Mulga Needlewood Pink Fire-bush Potato Bush Prickly Wattle Red-Bud Mallee Shrubby Fox-tail (Ptilotus whitei) Sticky Hopbush (Dodonaea viscosa) Sturt’s Desert Rose Tall Saltbush Wild Tomato Wire-Leaf Mistletoe

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