Botanical art
Prior names
Chrysocoryne tenella
Angianthus tenellus
Styloncerus tenellus
Siloxerus tenellus
Chrysocoryne drummondii
Common names
Slender Cup-flower
Slender Golden-tip
Etymology
Gnephosis of uncertain etymology but it is possible that Cassini, who descriped the genus in 1820 may derived it from the Greek 'gno-' and 'phos' meaning darkness, gloom and changing the first 'o' to 'e' to make it more pleasing to the ear. Drummondii name after James Drummond (1786-1863), a Scottish born botanist and naturalist who was an early settler in Western Australia.
Distribution and status
Found on the Eyre Peninsula and the South-east in South Australia, growing on sandy clay or sandy loam in seasonally wet flats and depressions. Also found in Western Australia and Victoria. Native. Uncommon in South Australia. Rare in Victoria. Common in Western Australia.
Herbarium regions: Eyre Peninsula, South Eastern
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Annual herbs to 6 cm high, simple or branched. Leaves oblanceolate, obovate, elliptic or narrowly elliptic, to 11 mm long 1 mm wide, apex sometimes glassy, usually with a dense cover of scale-like hairs. Flower-heads dense oblong-shaped with yellow flowers. Flowering between August and November. Fruits are creamy to pale brown heads. Seeds are tiny purple ovoid seed to 0.5 mm long and 0.3 mm wide, covered in scattered tubercules. Seed embryo type is spatulate.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between October and February. Collect heads or whole plants that are pale brown or turning brown. Each head should have numerous tiny seeds. Place the heads in a tray for a week to dry. Then rub the heads gently with your hands to dislodge the seeds. Use a fine sieve to separate the seeds from the unwanted material. Be careful as the seeds are very small. The seeds are dark brown and ovoid in shape. 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 | 19,000 (0.48 g) | 50 | 30-Oct-2007 | RJB75356 South Eastern | 19-Sep-2008 | 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.