Passerina paludosa Thoday

Much-branched shrubs or small tree, up to 2 m high. Stems fawn-coloured; indumentum of young stems closely white-tomentose, forming lengthwise patterns with cork on older branches, which gradually become glabrous; leaf scars oblate, comose at upper rim. Leaves erect, nearly straight, greyish green, imbricate, overlapping ±25%, appressed, plane shape narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate, longitudinaly folded and somewhat keeled, length x depth (3.0-)5.5-6.8(-10) x 0.8-1.4 mm, adaxial surface concave, tomentose, abaxial surface glabrous; base sessile; apex acute, sometimes incurved, bearing a persistent tuft of white, erect hairs; margins setose. Inflorescences with multiflowered main and co-florescences; spikes usually extended, 10-12-flowered, arrangement subterminal, axis white-tomentose, proliferating growth common. Bracts greyish green, appressed, narrowly obtrullate with leaf-like point, length x depth (5.2-)7.0 x 1.8(-2.0) mm; lamina folded lengthwise and keeled, adaxially concave (inside), abaxially slightly convex (outside), basally setose inside, glabrous outside, coriaceous, ±2-ribbed; wings membranous with obscure venation, glabrous; base cuneate; apex acute; margins white setose. Floral envelope ±7.2 mm long, papyraceous and yellow-pink during pollination, dehydrated after shedding of pollen, turning red to brown. Hypanthium shortly tomentose at ovary, neck strigose, ±2.6 mm long. Sepals: outer sepals cymbiform, ad-and abaxially glabrous, apex setose; inner sepals oblong, ad-and abaxially glabrous, apex setose with margins tomentose. Androecium with filaments of antipetalous whorl ±1.2 mm and those of antisepalous whorl ±2.4 mm long; anthers ovoid, ±0.7 x 0.5 mm, sub-basifixed, 2-thecous and 4-locular. Ovary ±2.3 x 1 mm. Fruit an achene with pericarp membranous and dry, ±2.4 x 1.2 mm, enveloped by persistent, loosely arranged hypanthium, breaking up at neck base due to dehydration and torsification of tissue, resulting in sepals and androecium being shed.