Lomandra densiflora

Asparagaceae

Pointed Mat-rush,

Soft Tussock Mat-rush

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plant: Lomandra densiflora plant Frahns Scrub

plant: Lomandra densiflora plant habitat Frahns Scrub

flower: Lomandra densiflora flowers Strathalbyn Cemetary

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

Common names

Pointed Mat-rush

Soft Tussock Mat-rush

Etymology

Lomandra, from the Greek 'loma', meaning edge, border or fringe and 'andros,' meaning a male, alluding to the circular margin of the anthers in some species. Densiflora from Latin for densely flowered.

Distribution and status

Endemic to South Australia and found in the Mount Lofty and Flinders Ranges, in open woodlands. Native. Common in South Australia.
Herbarium regions: Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Dioecious perennial tussock herb with bright green rigid leaves with 3 tiny points at the tip, to 60 cm long; basal sheaths becoming fibrous. Flower white. Flowering between August and November. Fruits are ovoid to globular capsule to 6 mm long; smooth, truncate at the summit, sometimes slightly curved. Seeds are yellow-brown, rounded wedge-shaped seed to 6 mm long and 3 mm wide. Seed embryo type is linear, underdeveloped.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between November and December. Collect mature fruits, turning brown with a hard seed inside, or when they are starting to split. Place the capsules in a tray and leave to dry for one to two weeks. Then rub the capsules gently by hand 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 two collections, the seed viability was high, at 100%. This species has morpho-physiological dormancy and will germinate slowly over weeks to months.

Seeds stored:

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Location	No. of seeds (weight grams)	Number of plants	Date collected	Collection number Collection location	Date stored	% Viability	Storage temperature
BGA MSB	3,000 (38.1 g) 2,400 (30.45 g)	50+	21-Nov-2006	DJD695 Southern Lofty	1-Aug-2007	100%	-18°C
BGA	7,200 (108.72 g)		20-Nov-2013	JRG83 Murray	1-Nov-2017	100%	-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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Date	Result	T0	T50	Pre-treatment \| Germination medium \| Incubator: Photoperiod / Thermoperiod
Sep-14	90%	28	35	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid + 20% smoke water for 24 h; moist sand; Incubated under winter conditions
Sep-14	80%	28	42	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid for 24 h; moist sand; Incubated under winter conditions
Mar-15	69%	28	49	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, 10% smoke water 24 h; moist sand; 12/12; / 15Â°C
Sep-14	64%	35	NA	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, dry heat 35Â°C oven for 6 weeks with 24 h wet cycle once a week, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid for 24 h; moist sand; Incubated under winter conditions
Mar-14	32%	56	NA	1000 mg/L gibberellic acid 24 h; moist sand; 12/12; / 15Â°C
Sep-14	32%	35	NA	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, dry heat 35Â°C oven for 6 weeks, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid for 24 h; moist sand; 12/12; / 15Â°C
Mar-15	28%	35	NA	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse; moist sand; 12/12; / 15Â°C
Mar-15	23%	28	NA	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid 72 h; moist sand; 12/12; / 15Â°C
Sep-14	22%	42	NA	dry heat 90Â°C oven 15 min, 30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid + 10% smoke water for 24 h; moist sand; Incubated under winter conditions
Mar-14	16%	56	NA	leached in water 24 h; moist sand; 12/12; / 15Â°C
Mar-15	14%	28	NA	30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, water rinse, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid 72 h, 10% smoke water 24 h; moist sand; 12/12; / 15Â°C
Sep-14	8%	42	NA	dry heat 90Â°C oven 15 min, 30% hydrogen peroxide 15 min, 1000 mg/L gibberellic acid 24 h; moist sand; Incubated under winter conditions

Result: Maximum percentage of germination observed.
T0: Number of days before first germinant observed.
T50: Number of days to achieve 50% germination.
Pre-treatment: The initial treatment that the seeds received prior to placement on germination media.
Germination medium: The substrate that seeds were placed on for the duration of the germination experiment.
Incubator conditions:
Photoperiod: The duration of light exposure that the seeds were subject to during a 24 hour period.
Thermoperiod: The constant or diurnal temperatures that seeds were subject to during a 24 hour period.
Winter conditions: 15°C 20 h (3am→11pm); 5°C 4 h (11pm→3am) / 10 h light (8am→6pm); 14 h dark (6pm→8am)
Spring/Autumn conditions: 22°C 12 h (8am→8pm); 10°C 12 h (8pm→8am) / 12 h light (8am→8pm); 12 h dark (8pm→8am)
Summer conditions: 30°C 14 h (6am→8pm); 15°C 10 h (8pm→6am) / 14 h light (6am→8pm); 10 h dark (8pm→6am)

Fleurieu (KAN02)	Kanmantoo	Least Concern
Mount Lofty Ranges (FLB01)	Flinders Lofty Block	Least Concern
Broughton (FLB02)		Least Concern (Probable Decline)
Olary Spur (FLB03)		Rare (IUCN: RA ab) (Definite Decline)
Southern Flinders (FLB04)		Least Concern (Probable Decline)
Central Flinders (FLB06)		Vulnerable (IUCN: VU B2ab(i,ii,iii); D2) (Probable Decline) [climate sensitive]
Southern Yorke (EYB01)	Eyre Yorke Block	Rare (IUCN: RA ab) (Definite Decline) [habitat loss]
St Vincent (EYB02)		Rare (IUCN: RA ab) (Definite Decline) [habitat loss]
Murray Mallee (MDD02)	Murray Darling Depression	Rare (IUCN: RA d(i,ii)) (Probable Decline) [edge of range]
Murray Lakes and Coorong (MDD03)		Rare (IUCN: RA d(i,ii)) (Probable Decline) [edge of range]