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Service Notice

The Western Australian Herbarium’s collections management system, WAHerb, and DBCA’s flora taxonomic names application, WACensus, have been set to read-only mode since 1 October 2025. Recent taxonomic changes are not currently being reflected in Florabase, herbarium collections, or the census. The project team is now conducting testing of the migrated data, and a further update will be provided by the end of the financial year (1 July). Please reach out to us if you have any questions or concerns.

The notice period started at 9:45 am on Friday, 12 December 2025 +08:00 and will end at 12:00 pm on Wednesday, 1 July 2026 +08:00.

Philotheca spicata (A.Rich.) Paul G.Wilson
Pepper and Salt

Reference
Nuytsia 12(2):264 (1998)
Conservation Code
Not threatened
Naturalised Status
Native to Western Australia
Name Status
Current

Slender, erect shrub, 0.2-0.6(-1.2) m high. Fl. pink-purple-blue/white, Jun to Nov. Variety of soils.

Grazyna Paczkowska, Descriptive Catalogue, 21 August 1996
Image

Scientific Description

Shrub, spines absent; branchlets smooth, without distinct raised glands, +/- cylindrical in cross-section, glabrous. Leaves alternate, simple, 6-20 mm long, 1-1.5 mm wide, flat, the margins recurved, smooth, without distinct raised glands, glabrous. Flowers in terminal, loose clusters (cymes or panicles); pedicels 4-6 mm long; calyx present, 1.5-2 mm long, verrucose (warty), glabrous; corolla pink, purple, white or cream or blue, petals five, 4-5 mm long, imbricate (overlapping), free, glabrous; stamens twice as many as petals, 2-2.5 mm long, smooth, ciliate (with a marginal fringe of hairs); anthers 0.5 mm long, with an appendage. Flowers in June, July, August, September, October and November. Occurs in the South-West Botanical Province, in the Avon Wheatbelt, Jarrah Forest, Warren, Swan Coastal Plain and Geraldton IBRA region(s).

C. Hollister and K.R. Thiele, 14 November 2023

Distribution

IBRA Regions
Avon Wheatbelt, Geraldton Sandplains, Jarrah Forest, Swan Coastal Plain, Warren.
IBRA Subregions
Dandaragan Plateau, Katanning, Lesueur Sandplain, Merredin, Northern Jarrah Forest, Perth, Southern Jarrah Forest, Warren.
IMCRA Regions
Central West Coast, Leeuwin-Naturaliste.
Local Government Areas (LGAs)
Armadale, Augusta Margaret River, Bayswater, Beverley, Boyup Brook, Bunbury, Busselton, Canning, Capel, Carnamah, Chittering, Cockburn, Collie, Coorow, Dandaragan, Dardanup, Donnybrook-Balingup, Gingin, Gosnells, Harvey, Joondalup, Kalamunda, Kwinana, Mandurah, Manjimup, Melville, Mundaring, Murray, Nannup, Nedlands, Northam, Perth, Quairading, Rockingham, Serpentine-Jarrahdale, South Perth, Stirling, Swan, Three Springs, Toodyay, Victoria Park, Wandering, Wanneroo, Waroona.