Dianella longifolia var. grandis

Asphodelaceae

Yellow-anther Flax-lily,

Pale Flax-lily

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plant: Dianella longifolia var. grandis foliage plant

plant: Dianella longifolia var. grandis plant Topperwein NFR

plant: Dianella longifolia var. grandis Swedes Flat plant

plant: Dianella longifolia var. grandis Swedes Flat foliage

flower: Dianella longifolia var grandis Topperwein NFR flower

flower: Dianella longifolia var. grandis flower Topperwein NFR flower

flower: Dianella longifolia var. grandis flower Langhorne Ck 1

flower: Dianella longifolia var. grandis flower Topperwein NFR

flower: Dianella longifolia var. grandis flower Topperwein NFR 1

fruit: Dianella longifolia var. grandis fruit

fruit: Dianella longifolia var. grandis fruits Langhorne Ck

seed: Dianella longifolia var. grandis TST310 Seeds

dissected seed: Dianella longifolia var. grandis Mt Crawford Longitudinal section

dissected seed: Dianella longifolia var. grandis DJD2119 Transverse cut1

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 paintings: 12

Prior names

Dianella laevis, partly

Common names

Yellow-anther Flax-lily

Pale Flax-lily

Etymology

Dianella is a diminutive of Diana, the virginal Roman goddess of hunting and the moon. The first-named species was found located in the French woods, thus the hunting association. Longifolia from Latin meaning long leaves. Grandis from Latin meaning large, tall or lofty, alluding to the large flower-spike.

Distribution and status

The taxonomy of the Dianella longifolia group is under revision and the distribution will change. It was previously recorded from the southern Flinders Ranges, Mount Lofty Ranges and the South-east in South Australia, growing in grassy woodland and was also recorded from Queensland, New South wales and Victoria. The taxonomy of the Dianella longifolia group is under revision and the status will change. It was previously considered rare in South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales and Uncommon in Victoria.
Herbarium regions: Murray, Southern Lofty, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

The taxonomy of the Dianella longifolia group is under revision and the description will change. It was previously described as a perennial herb to 1 m high. Leaves mostly basal, pale blue-green, forming loose clumps to 60 cm high; flower-spike a panicle with pale blue flowers and much longer than the foliage. Anthers yellow.Flowering between September and January. Fruits are round deep-blue to purple berries containing numerous seeds. Seeds are shiny black ovoid seeds to 4 mm long and 3 mm wide. Seed embryo type is linear fully developed.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between November and March. Pick the fruits that are soft and purple. These will have hard black seeds inside. It is best to clean the fruit when it is fresh. Place fruits in a bucket of water and rub the fruit gently by hand to dislodge the seeds. Then use a sieve to separate 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 viability is variable and can be average to high. Seeds are non-dormant, viable seed should germinate readily.

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	560 (4.21 g)	30	31-Mar-2005	DJD123 Southern Lofty	28-Mar-2006	100%	-18°C
MSB	2,200 (11.46 g)	100+	3-Jan-2008	TST318 Southern Lofty		55%
BGA	2,400 (20.15 g)	20+	3-Jan-2008	TST310 Southern Lofty	1-Jun-2010	70%	+5°C, -18°C
BGA	120 (9.23 g)		17-Mar-2010	Mt Crawford Southern Lofty	1-Jun-2010	100%	-18°C
BGA	209		17-Feb-2010	Montacute CP Southern Lofty	1-Jun-2010	100%	-18°C
BGA	1,080 (7.5 g)	20+	24-Jan-2011	DJD2119 Murray	1-Jan-2012	70%	-18°C
BGA	900 (6.930 g)		1-Jan-2022	Kuitpo Forest Southern Lofty	7-Jul-2022	98%	-18°C
BGA	4,800 (33.164 g)	30+	20-Jan-2022	BKB53 Southern Lofty	20-Jun-2023	90%	-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
May-08	68%	4	19	filter paper over moist sand; / 6 weeks summer, 6 weeks spring/autumn, 6 weeks winter.
May-08	32%	32	NA	filter paper over moist sand; / 6 weeks 20Â°C (dark), 12 weeks spring/autumn.
May-08	16%	32	NA	filter paper over moist sand; / 6 weeks 20Â°C (dark), 6 weeks spring/autumn, 6 weeks winter.
May-08	10%	32	NA	filter paper over moist sand; / 6 weeks 20Â°C (14/10), 6 weeks spring/autumn, 6 weeks winter.
May-08	2%	47	NA	filter paper over moist sand; / 6 weeks 20Â°C (dark), 12 weeks winter.

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)

Bridgewater (NCP01)	Naracoorte Coastal Plain	Vulnerable (IUCN: VU D2) [(no records) ]
Glenelg Plain (NCP02)		Vulnerable (IUCN: VU D2)
Lucindale (NCP03)		Vulnerable (IUCN: VU D2)
Tintinara (NCP04)		Vulnerable (IUCN: VU B2ab(i,ii,iii)) (Probable Decline) [does not like disturbance; limited habitat; 1 colony known on roadside]
Fleurieu (KAN02)	Kanmantoo	Vulnerable (IUCN: VU C2a(i)) (Definite Decline) [populations have disappeared in last 5yrs]
Mount Lofty Ranges (FLB01)	Flinders Lofty Block	Vulnerable (IUCN: VU C2a(i)) (Definite Decline) [grassy woodland sp; not secure, urbanisation/sprayed/ripped]
Broughton (FLB02)		Endangered (IUCN: EN D) (Definite Decline) [Most records are single plants; grazing/cropping are threats]
Southern Flinders (FLB04)		Vulnerable (IUCN: VU C1+2a(i)) (Definite Decline) [Most records are single plants; grazing/cropping are threats]
Murray Mallee (MDD02)	Murray Darling Depression	Vulnerable (IUCN: VU B2ab(i,ii,iii)) (Probable Decline) [grassy woodlands]
Lowan Mallee (MDD04)		Vulnerable (IUCN: VU B2ab(i,ii,iii)) (Probable Decline) [grassy woodlands]
Wimmera (MDD05)		Rare (IUCN: RA d(ii))