Botanical art
Common names
Tufted Knawel
Etymology
Scleranthus from the Greek 'skleros' meaning hard and 'anthos' meaning flower, alluding to the hardened fruiting calyx. Diandra from the Greek 'di' meaning two and 'andros' meaning male, referring to the two stamens enclosed within the calyx.
Distribution and status
Only known from one location in South Australia in the lower South-east close to the Victorian border, growing in sandy soil. Also found in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. Native. Very rare in South Australia. Rare in the other states.
Herbarium region: South Eastern
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Glabrous, decumbent perennial herb with woody base and stems to 10 cm long. Leaves to 7 mm long and 0.7 mm wide, thickened towards apex, keeled, margin very narrow, scarious, papillose and appearing denticulate. Inflorescence a sessile cluster of many creamy-green flowers. Flowering between October and December. Fruits are pale brown hard woody fruit to 3.5 mm long and 1.5 mm wide, with 10 nerved and 5 short outspreading sepals. Seeds are brown tear-shaped seed to 1 mm long and 0.7 mm wide. Seed embryo type is peripheral.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between November and January. Collect heads that are drying off and turning brown, these should contain small brown seeds. Be careful as plant can be prickly. Place the heads in a tray and leave to dry for 1 to 2 weeks. Then rub the dried heads with a rubber bung to dislodge the fruits. Use a sieve to separate any unwanted material. Seeds are enclosed in the hard fruit and can be stored as is. Store the fruit 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 70% to 95%.
Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BGA | 8,000 (9.59 g) | 50+ | 9-Dec-2009 | DJD1708 South Eastern | 1-Jun-2010 | 95% | +5°C, -18°C |
BGA | 1,360 (1.01 g) | 12 | 4-Dec-2012 | DJD1708 South Eastern | 27-Feb-2014 | 70% | -18°C |