Species of flowering plants
Wahlenbergia albomarginata, commonly known as the New Zealand harebell, is a species of plant native to New Zealand.[2][3]
Description
Wahlenbergia albomarginata's corolla form a 'bell-like' flower, an occurrence which is formally described as 'narrow-campulate-rotate'.[4] A single long tubed flower is produced atop each vertical, naked stem.[4] The corolla ranges from a typical pale-blue colour to darker violet-blue, with white zoning, but on occasion corolla may be entirely white.[4] Corolla tubes often lengthen from spring to summer and the corolla is 10-20 mm in length.[4]
Leaves are 10-40 mm long and may have a pale underside, or range from yellow-green to red-green in colour.[3][4] Additionally, all endemic Wahlenbergia species in New Zealand have a glabrous pedicel and calyx.[4] When cultivated or sheltered, leaves grow in radicle, 'rose-like' clusters around the rhizome tips.[4] Dry, windswept conditions cause leaves to become stiff and grow in sessile, compact tufts.[4] In low sunlight, stems may become elongated.[4] Leaves are typically petiolate, with entire, dentate or undulate leaf margins which are conspicuously white and thickened.[5] In cases where teeth are present on leaf margins, they tend to be unremarkable.[4] Morphologically, leaves range from linear to elliptic or ovate to obovate, where lamina gradually narrow to the petiole.[5]
Range
Wahlenbergia albomarginata is endemic to New Zealand.[6] It is found throughout the inland east coast of the South Island, in the Tasman, Marlborough, Canterbury, Otago and Southland regions, and in Stewart Island.[4]
Habitat
Wahlenbergia albomarginata thrives where there is low annual rainfall such as in dry, lowland tussock-grassland, river terraces, rocky and sub-alpine habitats.[5][7] Wahlenbergia albomarginata grows in well-draining riverside turf, sand, or stony soil.[8]
Ecology
Life cycle and phenology
Wahlenbergia albomarginata is a rhizomatous, herbaceous perennial plant. In cultivation, it can survive for fifteen years, while those in harsh, wild environments may persist for only two years.[4] Seedlings begin as slender tap roots below ground, which later develop into slim, pliable, interlacing rhizome systems. Above ground, leafy shoots emerge from the rootstock, eventually growing in a thin, long stalk with a single flower ontop.[4]
Predators, parasites, and diseases
Wahlenbergia albomarginata is eaten by goats and sheep, and thus do not grow in frequently grazed areas,[9] and is eaten by slug, snails and grasshoppers.[9][10]
References
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