Manulea pillansii Hilliard

Subshrubby, stems up to 1 m long, probably several from the base, more or less sprawling to erect, well-branched, at least main stems dark purple-red, minutely puberulous with almost sessile balloon-tipped hairs, glabrescent, distantly leafy. Leaves opposite, bases connate, or sometimes alternate upwards and then subtending branches, c. 10-70 x 1.5-5.5 mm, oblanceolate, apex ± obtuse, base narrowed and petiole-like, margins entire or with a few obscure teeth, both surfaces very minutely puberulous, probably glaucous and tinged with dark purple-red. Flowers many in long lax racemes, often thyrsoid, paniculately arranged through the branching of both stems and inflorescence axes, flowers either solitary or up to 7 in dichasial cymules. Bracts (lowermost) c. 1-3 x 0.5-1 mm, oblong. Peduncles and pedicels (lowermost) c. 2-3 mm long, shorter upwards, most flowers ± sessile. Calyx very obscurely bilabiate, tube c. 0.3 mm long, lobes 0.7-1.3 x 0.3-0.5 mm, subspathulate, tips somewhat thickened, very minutely puberulous on margins. Corolla tube 6.75-7.5 x 0.75-1 mm, cylindric, inflated near apex, limb bilabiate, 6-8 mm across the lateral lobes, posticous lobes 2.8-4 x 1-1.5 mm, anticous lobe 2.5-3.6 x 1-1.2 mm, all narrowly elliptic, margins revolute, orange, almost glabrous outside or very minutely puberulous, a few glistening glands on backs of lobes, inside glabrous or with a few clavate hairs in posticous and anticous positions. Stamens 4, anticous anthers 0.4-0.6 mm long, just included, posticous anthers 0.8-1 mm long, posticous filaments weakly bearded. Stigma 1-1.8 mm long, slightly shorter than style. Style 1.5-2 mm long. Ovary 1.5-1.6 x 0.5-0.7 mm, conical. Capsules c. 4-6.5 x 1.5-2 mm. Seeds c. 1 x 0.5 mm, pallid. The plants were in both flower and fruit in October, December, April and May.