Botanical art
Prior names
Vittadinia cuneata
Eurybiopsis gracilis
Vittadinia triloba var. lanuginosa
Common names
Woolly New Holland Daisy
Etymology
Vittadinia named after Carlo Vittadini (1800-1865}, an Italian doctor and mycologist, author of several important works on Italian mushroom species. Gracilis from Latin meaning slender or graceful; referring to the often graceful and slender habit of the species.
Distribution and status
Found in the southern part of South Australia, growing on a variety of soils in woodland and open land. Also found in Western Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. Native. Common in South Australia. Uncommon in Tasmania. Common in the other states.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Flinders Ranges, Eastern, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Perennial herb or subshrub to 40 cm high with erect, branching stems, produced annually from a woody stock, covered in fine white hairs, dense on stem, less so on leaves. Leaves flat to conduplicate, linear or narrowly lanceolate to spathulate, attenuate at the base, to 4 cm long and 7 mm wide, entire. Ray florets purple. Flowers throughout the year. Fruits are large fluffy creamy daisy head. Seeds are yellow semi-flat long ovoid seed to 5 mm long and 1 mm wide, surface with parallel striation and hairs and pappus as long as seed. Seed embryo type is spatulate fully developed.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between January and December. Collect heads that are fluffy. Either pick off the whole heads or use your finger and pull off the seeds from the head. Mature seeds will come off easily. Place the heads in a tray for a week to dry. No cleaning is required if only pure seeds are collected. If heads are collected, then rub the heads gently with your hands to dislodge the seeds. Viable seeds will be fat and hard. 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 one collection, the seed viability was high, at 95%. Seeds are non-dormant, viable seed should germinate readily without any treatment.
| Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BGA MSB | 20,000 (15 g) 20,000 (15 g) | 100 | 8-Nov-2004 | MKJ36 Eyre Peninsula | 31-Mar-2006 | 95% | -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.