Eremophila deserti is a shrub which is endemic to Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

.Common names for this species include Turkey Bush, Dogwood, Poison Bush Ellangowan Poison Bush, Pencil Bush and Carrot Bush. Some forms are poisonous to stock.

Description

It grows to between 0.3 and 4 metres in height and has thick, linear, unstalked leaves

Leaf

A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....

 which are 25 to 50 mm long, 3–6 mm wide. The honey-scented flowers are white to cream, sometimes with a flush of pink at the base, and without the spots seen in many other species of the genus. These appear between April and November (mid autumn and late spring) in its native range.

Taxonomy

The species was first formally described in 1837 as Myoporum desertii and reclassified within the genus Eremophila in 1986 by Robert Chinnock. The specific Latin epithet deserti(i) alludes to the arid regions in which it occurs.

The species is included in Eremophila sect. Pholiopsis which also includes Eremophila cuneata, Eremophila santolina and Eremophila fallax.

Distribution

Eremophila deserti occurs in arid parts of south-eastern Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

, New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, western Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

 and in the south of both South Australia

South Australia

South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...

 and Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

, being particularly abundant on the Nullarbor Plain

Nullarbor Plain

The Nullarbor Plain is part of the area of flat, almost treeless, arid or semi-arid country of southern Australia, located on the Great Australian Bight coast with the Great Victoria Desert to its north. It is the world's largest single piece of limestone, and occupies an area of about...

.