Botanical art
Prior names
Calycothrix schlechtendalii
Calycothrix rosea
Calycothrix muelleri
Calycothrix monticola
Calycothrix leucantha
Calycothrix behriana
Calycothrix scabra var. minor
Common names
Common Fringe-myrtle
Etymology
Calytrix from the Greek 'kalyx' meaning calyx and 'thrix' meaning hair, referring to the awns on the sepals. Tetragona from the Greek 'tetra' meaning four and 'gonia' meaning angle, referring to the leaf blade.
Distribution and status
Found in the southern part of South Australia, growing in a wide range of habitats including heath, mallee and open forest. Also found in Western Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in the other States.
Herbarium regions: Flinders Ranges, Eastern, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Shrub to 3 m high with pubescent to glabrous branchlets. Leaves pubescent to glabrous, linear to ovate, to 12 mm long and 1 mm wide; transverse section depressed-angular-obovate to very broadly obtriangular; margins often finely toothed or ciliate. Flowers white to pink with a long base. Flowering between August and October. Fruits are thin brown fruit with persistent calyx and awns. Seeds are a cylindrical seed sits in the thin tubular section of the fruit. The ridged seed coat is straw coloured. Seed embryo type is spatulate fully developed.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between November and January. Collect heads by hand when they are brown and slightly fat at the base. This should contain small hard seed. No cleaning is required if only the fruits were collected. If collected with other material, 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. Seed set and seed viability can be low. Seed viability can be low. This species has physiological dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate.
| Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BGA MSB | 2,700 (5.34 g) 2,700 (5.34 g) | 100+ | 1-Dec-2004 | DJD57 South Eastern | 31-Mar-2006 | 44% | -18°C |
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.