Plants of
South Australia
Maireana erioclada
Amaranthaceae
Fleshy Bluebush,
Rosy Bluebush
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Regional Species Conservation Assessments per IBRA subregion.
Least concern
Near threatened
Rare
Vulnerable
Endangered
Critically endangered
Extinct
Data deficient
Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
Innamincka
Marla
Marree
Mount Gambier
Oodnadatta
Renmark
Wudinna
Keith
Yunta
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Botanical art

Kath Alcock paintings: 5

Prior names

Kochia triptera var. erioclada

Kochia erioclada

Common names

Fleshy Bluebush

Rosy Bluebush

Etymology

'Maireana', after the 19th century French botanist, Adolphe Lemaire, and 'erioclada', from Greek 'erio', meaning woolly and 'clada', meaning branch, referring to the woolly branches.

Distribution and status

Widely distributed across mainland South Australia apart from Southern Lofty and South East regions. Also recorded in Western Australia, New South Wales and Victoria. Native, common in South Australia and southern coastal areas of Western Australia.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Lake Eyre, Nullarbor, Gairdner-Torrens, Flinders Ranges, Eastern, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty
NRM regions: Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, Alinytjara Wilurara, Eyre Peninsula, Northern and Yorke, South Australian Arid Lands, South Australian Murray-Darling Basin
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Shrub up to 60 cm, with woolly branches. Leaves narrow and fleshy to 10 mm; glabrous, alternate. Fruits and flowers from July to October. Fruits are perianth glabrous, with 5 vertical wings attached to the horizontal wing and to the tube along its length. Horizontal wing at the top of the tube with a single radial split. Seeds are ellipsoid to circular, convex, brown seed Seed embryo type is peripheral

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between July and October. Collect dry, papery fruits. Check that they contain well-developed seeds before making a collection. Shake or strip fruits into a vessel. Remove twigs and other plant material.

Seeds stored:
  Hide
LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)		Number
of plants		Date
collected		Collection number
Collection location		Date
stored		% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA 
MSB		38,000 (338 g)
38,000 (338 g)		6024-Oct-2004MOL4590
Gairdner-Torrens		1-May-2006100%-18°C
Location: BGA — the seeds are stored at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, MSB — the seeds are stored at the Millennium Seed Bank, Kew, England.
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.
We acknowledge the contributions of the South Australian Seed Conservation Centre, the Botanic Gardens of South Australia, and the Department for Environment and Water.