Selago multispicata Hilliard

Perennial herb, stems 60-300 mm long, either tufted from crown of woody taproot up to c. 15 mm in diam. or stoloniferous, prostrate to erect, simple to loosely branched, puberulous, hairs 0.1-0.2 mm long, recurved, ± appressed, leafy. Leaves opposite, alternate upwards, fascicled, largest primary leaves 8-15 x 1-1.5 mm, narrowly elliptic, apex acute or subacute, base slightly narrowed, margins entire, thickened, midrib slightly raised on lower surface near base, invisible on upper surface, coarse minute hairs less than 0.1 mm long on margins; axillary leaves similar but much smaller. Inflorescence composed of many small racemes c. 5 x 5-6 mm in first flower, elongating to c. 35-80 mm in fruit, then flowers often distant, arranged in loose corymbose or subcorymbose terminal panicles. Bract adnate to pedicel and calyx tube, lowermost 2-3(-4) x 0.8-1(-1.2) mm, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, acute, with white membranous margins up to c. 0.2 mm broad, coarse hairs 0.1-0.2 mm long on margins at base. Pedicel 0.1-0.25 mm long. Calyx 1.2-1.4(-2) mm long, usually obliquely 3-lobed (rarely 5-lobed), anticolateral lobes 0.9-1.2(-1.5) x 0.8-1 mm, hairs up to 0.15-0.2 mm long on margins, outside few up to 0.1-0.15 mm long on posticous side together with many globular glands. Corolla tube 1.4-2.1 mm long (all parts smaller when flowers female), funnel-shaped, limb 2.5-4 mm across lateral lobes, posticous lip 1-1.3 x 0.9-1.2 mm, entire or notched, anticous lobe 1.3-2.2 x 0.9-1.2 mm, all lobes elliptic-oblong, white. Stamens: posticous filaments 1.1-1.7 mm long, anticous filaments 1.8-2.1 mm, all anthers well exserted (staminodes usually included). Stigma and style c. 2-3 mm long, style glabrous. Ovary c. 0.4 x 0.3 mm. Cocci 1.3-1.7 x 1-1.2 mm, red-brown, smooth, the pair broadly ovoid in outline. Flowering is mainly between November and March, tailing off in April and May.