Flora of New Zealand Series

Herb with short rhizomes, forming large clumps. Basal lvs long-petiolate. Lamina to 25 × 15 cm, ovate or broad-ovate, with stellate tomentum and whitish below, densely stellate but green above, crenate; base deeply cordate. Upper lvs and bracts smaller, with short petioles; hairs of lamina simple or few-rayed above; base subcordate to truncate. Infl. stems becoming woody, to c. 60 × 1 cm, strongly quadrangular, with stellate tomentum when young. Verticels dense, 40-65-flowered. Bracteoles 12-15 mm long, linear-subulate, densely hairy. Calyx tube c. 12 mm long, densely hairy; teeth c. 4 mm long, spinosely subulate. Corolla c. 3 cm long, yellow, with stellate tomentum outside; upper lip strongly hooded and arched over emarginate lower lip. Anthers slightly exserted. Nutlets not seen.

S.: Korere (Nelson), Kowai Bush (near Springfield, Canterbury).

Syria 1978

Waste land, occasional cultivation escape.

FL Dec-Feb.

This sp. has usually been called P. viscosa in horticulture. The true P. viscosa Poiret is a shrub with obviously glandular stems, bracteoles and calyces. Several other spp. of this genus are cultivated in N.Z. and by far the commonest is the related P. fruticosa L., Jerusalem sage. This is a small shrub with oblong lvs and ovate bracts; the corolla resembles that of P. russeliana.