Newhaven FloraButterfly Bush (Petalostylis cassioides) Desert Poplar (Codonocarpus cotinifolius) Fork-leaved Corkwood (Hakea divaricata) Newcastelia spodiotricha Pebble Bush (Stylobasium spathulatum) Senna pleurocarpa Tar Bush (Eremophila glabra)
Eremophila glabra, commonly known as tar bush, is a member of the figwort family Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia.
The specific epithet (glabra) is Latin meaning “hairless”, “bald” or “smooth”. In spite of its scientific name, not all forms of the plant are glabrous (in botany, glabrous refers to a smooth plant surface completely devoid of hair or pubescence), as most have many small, raised glands on the stems, flowers and leaves.
Eremophila glabra is sometimes a low, ground-hugging and sometimes an erect shrub. The leaves can be variable in size and shape.
The flowers are red, orange, yellow or yellowish green. They lack spots and are arranged singly or in pairs in the leaf axils on a stalk which is 3–10 mm long. There are 5 sepals which are narrow egg-shaped to triangular and of slightly differing lengths. The petals are 20–30 mm long, joined in a tube with 5 lobes at the end. The upper lobes are pointed and usually close together while the lower lip is blunt and bends backwards. There are four stamens that extend beyond the end of the petals.
In Australia, flowering occurs between early autumn and summer (March to December). The fruit are oval to almost spherical, about 4–9 mm in diameter, glabrous, dry or fleshy and dark brown.
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Plantae
- Phylum: Charophyta
- Class: Equisetopsida
- Subclass: Magnoliidae
- Superorder: Aseranae
- Order: Lamiales
- Family: Scrophulariaceae
- Genus: Eremophila
- Species: Eremophila glabra
Footnote & References
- Many thanks for ID to members of Alice Springs Field Naturalists Club, Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/alicefieldnats/
- Eremophila glabra (R.Br.) Ostenf., Atlas of Living Australia, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/https://id.biodiversity.org.au/node/apni/8694676
- Eremophila glabra, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eremophila_glabra (last visited Sept. 22, 2022).
Newhaven FloraButterfly Bush (Petalostylis cassioides) Desert Poplar (Codonocarpus cotinifolius) Fork-leaved Corkwood (Hakea divaricata) Newcastelia spodiotricha Pebble Bush (Stylobasium spathulatum) Senna pleurocarpa Tar Bush (Eremophila glabra)
Newhaven Wildlife SanctuaryNewhaven Fauna Newhaven Flora
Northern TerritoryCentral Australia Aileron Alice Springs Binns Track Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve Ernest Giles Road Finke Gorge National Park Henbury Meteorites Conservation Reserve Hermannsburg Historic Precinct Ilparpa Claypans Karlu Karlu / Devils Marbles Conservation Reserve MacDonnell Ranges Mount Connor Newhaven Wildlife Sanctuary Owen Springs Reserve Red Centre Way Drive Standley Chasm Tnorala (Gosse Bluff) Conservation Reserve Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Watarrka National Park & Kings Canyon Wurre / Rainbow Valley