Skip to main content

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. Due to the rapidly approaching holiday season and associated agency and facility soft closures, along with the substantial work involved in data mapping, cleaning, and verification, the migration to the new collection management software is not expected to occur before 1 March 2026, when a further update will be provided. 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 Monday, 2 March 2026 +08:00.

Abutilon indicum (L.) Sweet
Indian Lantern Flower

This name is not current. Find out more information on related names.

Reference
Hort.Brit. [Sweet] 54 (1826)
Conservation Code
Not threatened
Naturalised Status
Native to Western Australia
Name Status
Not Current

Upright shrub, 0.3-4 m high. Fl. yellow-orange, Feb to Nov. Sandy soils. Coastal dunes & flats, creeks.

Grazyna Paczkowska, Descriptive Catalogue, 18 September 1996

Scientific Description

Shrub. Stems hairy. Leaves 45-180 mm long, 20-95 mm wide, not lobed; margins crenate; indumentum present, with non-tubercle-based simple hairs, with stellate hairs; stipules present but early deciduous (only visible on youngest leaves). Perianth clearly of two whorls (calyx and corolla), the corolla obvious and prominent. Pedicel present, 27-30 mm long; indumentum present, with simple hairs, with stellate hairs. Epicalyx (extra segments or 'bracteoles' immediately below the calyx) absent. Calyx green, 15-18 mm long, the lobes fused half or more of their length, simple hairs (without tubercle bases) present, stellate hairs present. Corolla yellow or orange, 30 mm long, glabrous. Stamens many, united and arising from a staminal tube around the style; filaments present, 2-3 mm long; anthers 1-1.5 mm long. Staminodes absent. Ovary hairs or scales present, simple hairs present; style 1, 5-6 mm long, with numerous style branches or lobes, hairy for most of length. Fruits dehiscent (capsules and follicles), length-width ratio more or less as long as wide, hairs or scales present, stellate hairs present; apex rounded; calyx persistent to mature fruit; carpels 15-18; seeds per loculus 2-4. Flowering time February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October or November. Distribution Botanical Province Northern or Eremaean, IBRA Bioregion Carnarvon, North Kimberley or Dampierland.