Botanical art
Prior names
Wahlenbergia bicolor
Common names
Yellowish Bluebell
Yellow-wash Bluebell
Etymology
Wahlenbergia named by H.A Schrader in honour of Georg Göran Wahlenberg (1780-1851), a Swedish professor of botany. Luteola from Latin meaning yellowish; referring to the yellowish outer colour of the flowers.
Distribution and status
Found in the southern part of South Australia, from the Gammon Ranges to the lower South-east, growing on fertile, often clayey soils derived in lowland grassland and open woodland communities. Also found in New South Wales and Victoria. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in the other states.
Herbarium regions: Flinders Ranges, Eastern, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
NRM regions: Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Northern and Yorke, South Australian Arid Lands, South Australian Murray-Darling Basin, South East
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Erect perennial herb to 60 cm high with thickened taproot and few to many stems from the base, freely branched, hairless or with short hairs near the base, usually leafy for the greater part. Leaves opposite throughout or becoming alternate above base, linear (or the lowermost narrowly elliptic or oblanceolate), to 60 mm long and 4 mm wide, margins entire or with a few small callus-teeth. Flowers terminal, blue, whitish or often yellowish outside, funnel-shaped with 5 narrow-triangular lobes. Flowering between October and March. Fruits are brown narrow conical capsule to 12 mm long and 3.5 mm wide. Seed embryo type is spatulate under-developed.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between January and November. Collect capsules that are maturing, drying and turning brown with hard seeds inside. Place the capsules in a tray and leave to dry for a week. Then rub the capsules gently with your hands to dislodge the seeds. Use a sieve to separate the unwanted material. Be careful as the seeds are very small. 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 were average to high, ranging from 75% to 80%.
Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BGA MSB | 392,000 (7.39 g) 392,000 (7.39 g) | 100+ | 3-Jan-2008 | TST311 Southern Lofty | 19-Sep-2008 | 80% | -18°C |
BGA | 2,500 (0.11 g) | 50 | 15-Nov-2007 | RJB75600 Northern Lofty | 19-Sep-2008 | 75% | -18°C |
BGA MSB | 30,000 (0.64 g) 30,000 (0.64 g) | 20+ | 24-Nov-2010 | KHB459 Flinders Ranges | 1-Jan-2012 | 85% | -18°C |