Plants of
South Australia
Trachymene ornata
Araliaceae
Sponge-fruit Trachymene,
Cotton-ball Trachymene
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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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Botanical art

Kath Alcock painting: 1

Prior names

Didiscus eriocarpus

Trachymene eriocarpa

Dimetopia eriocarpa

Didiscus ornatus var. semilanatus

Trachymene ornata var. semilanata

Trachymene ornata var. ornata

Common names

Sponge-fruit Trachymene

Cotton-ball Trachymene

Etymology

Greek 'trachys' rough, 'mene' moon and Latin 'ornatus' adorned

Distribution and status

Found in rocky areas often on shallow soils. Common
Herbarium regions: Gairdner-Torrens, Flinders Ranges, Eastern
NRM regions: Eyre Peninsula, Northern and Yorke, South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Annual herb, 4-20 cm high, stems sparsely hairy. Leaves deeply 3-lobed to dissected, scattered hairs, lamina ovate in outline, 1–3 cm long, 0.5–3 cm wide. Inflorescence an 3-6 flowered umbel, 10mm in diameter, petals white. Flowering July-October. Fruits are fruit broad ovate, 4-5 mm long, 6-8 mm broad, both mericarps developed and covered with dense woolly white hairs.

Seeds stored:
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LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA12,000 (20.51 g)50+3-Nov-2005DJD180
Eyre Peninsula
9-Aug-200675%-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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