Flora of New Zealand Series

Prostrate to erect perennial herb, often forming mats and rooting at nodes, lacking black glands. Stems very slender, generally < 15 cm long, 4-angled, often brownish or reddish purple, ascending towards apex when flowering; internodes often short. Lvs sessile, (1)-3-7-(10) × (0.5)-1-3-(5) mm, usually ovate, oblong-ovate, elliptic, or obovate, occasionally linear, with pellucid glands; margin flat or undulate and crisped; base cuneate to rounded. Fls terminal, solitary or few in cymes. Sepals 2-4 mm long, linear-oblong. Corolla (4)-5-8-(c. 10) mm diam., orange-yellow, = or a little > sepals. Stamens ± forming 3 bundles. Styles 3. Capsule 2-4.5 mm diam., broadly ellipsoid-ovoid to suborbicular, dry. Seeds 0.4-0.6 mm long, broad-cylindric to ellipsoid, reticulate.

Very delicate, mat-forming plants with minute lvs 1-3 × 0.5-1 mm occur in some localities, and are currently placed with this sp. This may be the plant described as H. pusillum Choisy early last century from Australasia and regarded as a synonym of H. japonicum [ see Robson, N. K. B., Blumea 20: 268 (1972)]. Robson considered that there are 2 "variants" of H. japonicum present in N.Z. but did not state to which the name H. pusillum applies; one variant usually has irregular stem branching, or if the stems are sympodial then they are erect to decumbent, the other usually has sympodial branching and ± prostrate stems. The latter is also indigenous to New Guinea and Tasmania, whereas the first variant occupies the range of the sp.

N.; S.; St.

Also indigenous to Japan, China, N.E. India, Sri Lanka, S.E. Asia, Malesia, S.E. Australia.

Lowland to montane open places, especially wet ground, sometimes in modified communities.

FL Nov-Apr.