Xyris gracilis



Xyris gracilis, commonly known as slender yellow-eye, is a species of flowering plant in the family Xyridaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a tufted herb with linear leaves with 5 to 8 flowering stems with bright yellow flowers.

Description
Xyris gracilis is a tufted herb with flat, linear leaves 60–29 cm long and 1–4 mm wide with a sheathing base 14–60 mm long and brown or reddish. There are usually 5 to 8 yellow inflorescences, each 5–8 mm on flowering stems 27–66 cm long, each inflorescence with 6 to 14 bracts arranged in 3 to 5 whorls and the flowers opening one at a time. The style is 5–6 mm long with branches 2–4 mm long. Flowering occurs in December and January.

Taxonomy
Xyris gracilis was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown in Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen. The specific epithet (gracilis) means "slender".

Distribution and habitat
Slender yellow-eye grows in mosit or swampy areas, often in heath, and is widespread on the coast and ranges of New South Wales and southern Victoria.