Chocolate Fire-Bush

Seringia cacaobrunnea is a bushy, suckering shrub that typically grows up to 0.4–1.0 m (1 ft 4 in – 3 ft 3 in) high and 0.5–1 m (1 ft 8 in – 3 ft 3 in) wide, its young growth covered with dark brown, star-shaped hairs. The leaves are oblong to elliptic, 5–30 mm (0.20–1.18 in) long and 3–8 mm (0.12–0.31 in) wide on a petiole 1–5 mm (0.039–0.197 in) long, with narrow stipules up to 4 mm (0.16 in) long at the base. The upper surface of the leaves is more or less glabrous and the lower surface is covered with rust-coloured, star-shaped hairs. The flowers are purple, 12–15 mm (0.47–0.59 in) wide, borne in groups of 3 to 11 on a peduncle 2–8 mm (0.079–0.315 in) long, each flower on a pedicel 4–12 mm (0.16–0.47 in) long with rust-coloured bracts 4–10 mm (0.16–0.39 in) long at the base. The sepals are purple, 8–11 mm (0.31–0.43 in) and joined at the base for about half their length, and there are no petals. The staminodes are 2 mm (0.079 in) long, and the anthers are slightly shorter than the filaments. Flowering occurs from May to January, with a peak in September.

Chocolate fire-bush grows in mallee heath and woodland in isolated populations near Ravensthorpe, Lake King, Mukinbudin and east of Salmon Gums in the Avon Wheatbelt, Coolgardie, Esperance Plains and Mallee bioregions of south-western Western Australia.