Plants of
South Australia
Androcalva multiloba
Malvaceae
Wrinkle-leaf Commersonia,
Trailing Commersonia
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Regional Species Conservation Assessments per IBRA subregion.
Least concern
Near threatened
Rare
Vulnerable
Endangered
Critically endangered
Extinct
Data deficient
Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
Innamincka
Marla
Marree
Mount Gambier
Oodnadatta
Renmark
Wudinna
Keith
Yunta
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Prior names

Commersonia multiloba

Commersonia tatei f. larger-leaved

Commersonia tatei, partly

Common names

Wrinkle-leaf Commersonia

Trailing Commersonia

Etymology

Androcalva from the Greek 'andros' meaning a male and 'calvus' meaning bald, hairless; referring to the glabrous staminodes present in this genus. Multiloba from the Latin 'multus' meaning many and 'lobus' meaning rounded projection; referring to the many serrated lobes on the margin of leaves of this species.

Distribution and status

Endemic to South Australia and currently only known from two locations near Cowell on Eyre Peninsula, growing on reddish-brown, clayey sand over granite or white sand, in Melaleuca and Acacia shrubland, with scattered mallee and Triodia. Native. Very rare in South Australia.
Herbarium region: Eyre Peninsula
NRM region: Eyre Peninsula
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Erect, spreading perennial shrub to 50 cm tall. Leaves are dark green, wrinkled and covered in fine stellate hairs. Stems are covered in copper coloured hairs. Flowers are white with a red centre. Flowering between August and october. Fruits are brown globular capsule with four valves, splitting when matured and contain numerous black seeds. Seeds are small black tear-shaped seeds to 1.5 mm long, with small rounded projections on the seed coat. Seed embryo type is spathulate.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between October and November. Capsules can be collected prior to splitting as long as the seeds inside are hard and black. Place the capsules in a tray and cover with paper to prevent seeds being lost when explosively 'popping' out. Leave to dry for at least a week. Rub the dried capsules by hand to dislodge the seeds. Use a sieve to rub the fruits and to separate the unwanted material. Store the seeds with a dessicant such as dried silica beads or dry rice in an air tight container in a cool and dry place. From one collection, the seed viability was high, at 100%. These seeds have physical dormancy and can be germinated after pre-treatment such as scarification, nicking or hot water. The pre-treatments remove/breach the physical barrier for moisture uptake.

Seeds stored:
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LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA 
MSB
8,300 (14.86 g)
8,300 (14.86 g)
100+17-Oct-2007DJD906
Eyre Peninsula
19-Sep-2008100%+5°C, -18°C
BGA2,200 (4.17 g)50+4-Apr-2019TST1417
Eyre Peninsula
24-Jun-202095%-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.
Germination table:
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