Botanical art
Prior names
Ptilotus parvifolius var. parvifolius, partly
Trichinium parvifolium, partly
Trichinium whitei
Common names
Shrubby Mulla Mulla
Small-leaf Mulla Mulla
Etymology
Ptilotus from the Greek 'ptilotos' meaning feathered or winged; referring to the hairy flowers. Whitei named after Samuel Albert White (1870 - 1954), an avid plant and bird collector in South Australia, Central Australia and Queensland and collected the type specimen at 30 miles East of Deep Well, Lake Eyre Basin in 1913.
Distribution and status
Found in an area north of Copper Pedy in South Australia, growing in red, brown or yellow skeletal soilsof gravelly clay or sand, on gibber plains, scree slopes, quartzitic sandstone hills, limestone outcrops, rocky breakaways, gullies and creekbeds. Also found in Northern Territory. Native. Rare in South Australia. Common in Northern Territory.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Lake Eyre
NRM regions: Alinytjara Wilurara, South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Much-branched, sometimes divaricate shrub to 100 cm high, some old branchlets can be spiny, stems striate, glabrous, sometimes glaucous, new stems yellowish or grey-green, older wood brown to grey-black. Leaves narrowly obovate to broadly obovate, sometimes spathulate, to 12 mm long and 6 mm wide, clustered at young stem shoots, glabrous, pale green to yellowish or grey-green, sometimes glaucous. Flower-spike small loose clusters with 10–40 pale pink, pale purple, or grey (from hairs) over red underneath flowers. Fruits are ovoid head containing numerous long papery and hairy fruits, each containing one seed Seeds are dark brown to black reinform seed to 3 mm long and 2 mm wide. Seed embryo type is peripheral.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between October and December. Be very careful when collecting this species as the fruits contain fine hairs that may cause an allergic reaction for some people. Collect the fruit heads when dried to a pale straw colour. Each fruit should come off the head easily when fingers are rubbed up the stem. Collect more fruits than required as not all fruits will have a viable seed. Be very careful when cleaning this species as the fruits contain fine hairs that may cause an allergic reaction for some people. To clean, rub the fruit heads gently to dislodge the seed at the base of each fruit. Use a sieve to separate the unwanted material. Store the seeds with a desiccant such as dried silica beads or dry rice, in an air tight container in a cool and dry place. From two collections, the seed viability were high, at 90%. Seeds are non-dormant, viable seed should germinate readily.
Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BGA | 620 (1.37 g) | 100+ | 4-Dec-2010 | DJD2072 Lake Eyre | 1-Jan-2012 | 90% | -18°C |
BGA MSB | 1,700 (3.26 g) 1,700 (3.26 g) | 100+ | 2-Nov-2013 | DJD2741 Lake Eyre | 24-Mar-2015 | 90% | -18°C |