Allocasuarina diminuta



Allocasuarina diminuta is a species of flowering plant in the family Casuarinaceae and is endemic to eastern New South Wales. It is a dioecious or monoecious shrub or small tree that has branchlets up to 230 mm long, the leaves reduced to scales in whorls of six to ten, the fruiting cones 5–20 mm long containing winged seeds (samaras) 3.5–5.0 mm long.

Description
Allocasuarina diminuta is a dioecious or monoecious shrub or small tree that typically grows to a height of 1–5 m and has smooth bark. Its branchlets are more or less erect, up to 230 mm long, the leaves reduced to erect to spreading, scale-like teeth 0.3–0.8 mm long, arranged in whorls of six to ten around the branchlets. The sections of branchlet between the leaf whorls (the "articles") are 5–12 mm long and 0.6–1.1 mm wide. Male flowers are arranged in spikes 5–50 mm long, the anthers 0.5–0.8 mm long. Female cones are cylindrical, on a peduncle 2–10 mm long. Mature cones are 5–20 mm long and 5–12 mm in diameter, the samaras about 3.5–5 mm long.

Taxonomy
Allocasuarina diminuta was first formally described in 1989 by Lawrie Johnson in the Flora of Australia from specimens collected by Karen Wilson near Conimbla National Park in 1982. The specific epithet, (diminuta) means "diminished", referring all its parts being smaller than those of the similar A. distyla.

In 1989, in the same Flora of Australia, Johnson described three subspecies of Allocasuarina diminuta, and the names are accepted by the Australian Plant Census:
 * Allocasuarina diminuta subsp. annectens L.A.S.Johnson is a shrub to 1.0–2.5 m with six or eight teeth 0.4–0.8 mm long, the anthers 0.6–0.8 mm long. The epithet annectens means "binding" or "connecting", referring to this species being intermediate between the other two.
 * Allocasuarina diminuta L.A.S.Johnson subsp. diminuta is a shrub to 2–5 m with six or seven teeth 0.3–0.5 mm long, the anthers 0.5–0.7 mm long.
 * Allocasuarina diminuta subsp. mimica L.A.S.Johnson is a shrub to 1.0–2.5 m with six to eight teeth 0.3–0.6 mm long, the anthers 0.5–0.7 mm long. The epithet mimica means "mimicking", referring to this species being "a little replica" of ''A. distyla".

Distribution and habitat
This allocasuarina grows in heath or low open woodlands, on sandstone ridges and hillsides in New South Wales. Subspecies annectens occurs between Sassafras, Braidwood and Lake Bathurst with a disjunct population south-west of Eden. Subspecies diminuta is found on the western slopes and nearby plains between Temora and the Pilliga forest, and as far east as Capertee and Bathurst. Subspecies mimica mainly occurs in the Sydney Basin, but is also found as far as Blackheath, Taralga and Bundanoon.