Botanical art
Prior names
Styphelia patula
Common names
Shiny Ground-berry
Prickly Ground-berry
Etymology
Acrotriche from the Greek 'akron' meaning summit and 'thrix' meaning hair, alluding to the tuft of hairs at the tip of the corolla lobes. Patula from the Latin 'patulous' meaning spreading slightly.
Distribution and status
Found mainly along the coast of South Australia but also inland on Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas and the Mount Lofty Ranges, growing on sandy ironstone and on coastal limestone in mallee scrub. Also found in Western Australia. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in Western Australia.
Herbarium regions: Nullarbor, 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
Rigid divaricately branched shrub to 100 cm high and 60 cm across, with red-brown young branches and grey older stems. Leaves thick, rigid, flat to slightly concave to 16mm long and 8mm wide, acute to acuminate, strong pointed tip with base obtuse to cordate and margins entire or serrulate towards the apex, both surfaces glabrous. Flowers pale-green appearing between June and September. Fruits are red fleshy, spherical or depressed-globular fruit to 5mm by 6mm. Seeds are woody, pale-brown, globular or with winged-like ridges to 3 mm long and 3 mm wide. Seed embryo type is linear underdeveloped.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between October and December. Collect berries that are ripe, red in colour and with soft flesh and a hard seed inside. Place the berries in a bucket of water and rub the flesh off with your hands. Drain the water and wash again if required to remove all the flesh. Then spread the wet seeds on some paper towel and leave to dry. 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. Seed viability is usually high. This species is generally difficult to germinate, it has morphophysiological dormancy and complex germination requirements.
Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BGA MSB | 20,000 (200 g) 20,000 (200 g) | 40 | 21-Dec-2004 | DJD86 Yorke Peninsula | 28-Mar-2006 | 90% | -18°C |