Plants of
South Australia
Swainsona purpurea
Fabaceae
Purple Swainson-pea
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Botanical art

Kath Alcock paintings: 2

Prior names

Swainsona stipularis var. longialata

Swainsona stipularis var. purpurea

Etymology

Swainsona named after Isaac Swainson (1746-1812), an English scientist and horticulturalist who had a private botanic garden near London. Purpurea from the Latin 'purpura' meaning purple dye; referring to the colour of the flowers.

Distribution and status

Found in low-lying areas or on dunes, associated with lake margins and often with salt and/or gypsum across the northern parts of South Australia. Also found in all other mainly states. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in other states.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Lake Eyre, Nullarbor, Gairdner-Torrens, Flinders Ranges, Eastern
NRM regions: Alinytjara Wilurara, South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

An erect or spreading plant with few to many hairy stems arising from a taproot. Leaves 3-12cm long with 3-11 hairy, linear or elliptic leaflets. Flowers purple. Fruits are dark brown to black, long linear, leathery pods, 10-60mm long covered in fine hairs. Seeds are light brown, semi-flat reniform seeds to 2mm long with a smooth surface. Seed embryo type is bent.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between September and November. Collect mature pods, dark brown or black containing hard seeds. Mature pods can be found lying on the ground next to the plant containing hard seeds. When dried the pods become hard and difficult to open. Use a rubber bung to rub the pods or break the pods open with your fingers to dislodge the seeds. 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 three collections, the seed viability were high, ranging from 90% to 100%. This species has physical dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate (e.g. nicking or softening the seed coat).

Seeds stored:
  Hide
LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
 
MSB

4,900 (23.94 g)
20+5-Oct-2010DJD1935
Lake Eyre
90%
BGA3,000 (15.67 g)20+3-Nov-2010TST1090
Lake Eyre
1-Jan-201290%-18°C
BGA8,000 (26.62 g)50+5-Oct-2010MJT282
Lake Eyre
1-Jan-2012100%-18°C
Location: BGA — the seeds are stored at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, MSB — the seeds are stored at the Millennium Seed Bank, Kew, England.
Number of plants: This is the number of plants from which the seeds were collected.
Collection location: The Herbarium of South Australia's region name.
% Viability: Percentage of filled healthy seeds determined by a cut test or x-ray.