Botanical art
Prior names
Apalochlamys kerrii
Apalochlamys billardieri
Calea spectabilis
Cassinia spectabilis
Common names
False Tobacco
Showy Firebush
Etymology
Apalochlamys from the Greek 'apalos' meaning soft and 'chlamys' meaning cloak, referring to the soft texture of the involucres. Spectabilis from Latin meaning remarkable or showy, alluding to the species showy inflorescence.
Distribution and status
Found along the coast in South Australia from the lower Eyre Peninsula to the lower South-east, growing on dunes and other sandy soils, often after disturbance such as fire. Also found in Victoria and Tasmania. Native. Uncommon in South Australia. Common in the other States.
Herbarium regions: Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
NRM regions: Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Kangaroo Island, Northern and Yorke, South East
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Biennial herb to 2 m high with erect stems, unbranched above the base and with whitish hairs above, becoming woody below. Leaves decreasing in size up the stem are strongly scented, oblong to lanceolate, amplexicaul and often shortly decurrent at the base, to 15 cm long and 4 cm wide; green with glandular hairs above, whitish hairs below; soft, prominently veined. Inflorescence a large pyramid spike to 40 cm long; intricately branched with drooping leafless branchlets subtended by reduced leaves with yellowish flowers. Flowering between January and March. Fruits are golden-brown heads. Seeds are brown cylindrical seed to 0.9 mm long and 0.4 mm wide; ribbed. Seed embryo type is spathulate fully developed.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between March and May. Collect heads that are golden brown and contain hard brown seeds. Place the heads in a tray for a week to dry. Then rub the heads gently with your hands to dislodge the seeds. Viable seeds will be long, fat and hard. 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 one collection, the seed viability was high, at 100%. Seeds are non-dormant, viable seed should germinate readily.
| Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BGA MSB | 160,000 (9.5 g) 12,700 (6.1 g) | 30 | 17-Mar-2007 | DJD750 Kangaroo Island | 1-Aug-2007 | 100% | -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.