Scaevola calendulacea commonly known as dune fan-flower, is a flowering plant in the family Goodeniaceae. It is a small, mat-forming shrub with blue fan-shaped flowers with a yellow centre and grows on sand dunes in eastern and southern Australia.
Description Scaevola calendulacea is a prostrate shrub growing up to high with oblong to lance shaped or egg shaped leaves up to long, wide, margins smooth with flattened hairs, and tapering to the base. The blue flowers are borne on terminal spikes up to long, corolla long, soft, short hairs on the outside, bearded inside and the wings are wide. Flowering occurs throughout the year and the fruit is white or purplish, globular, smooth, up to in diameter and the ovary has two locules.
Taxonomy and naming Scaevola calendulacea was first formally described in 1798 by Henry Cranke Andrews as Goodenia calendulacea, but in 1917 was assigned to the genus, Scaevola, by George Claridge Druce.The specific epithet (calendulacea) refers to the similarity to the genus Calendula.
Distribution and habitat This scaevola is a widespread species growing on sand dunes in coastal locations in South Australia, Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.
References Druce, G.C. (1917) Nomenclatorial Notes: chiefly African and Australian. The Botanical Exchange Club and Society of the British Isles Report for 1916, Suppl. 2: 644
Andrews, H.C. (1798) Repository for New, and Rare Plants 1: t. 22