Botanical art
Common names
Leafless Bitter-pea
Etymology
Daviesia named after the Rev. Hugh Davies (1739-1821), a Welsh botanist and an Anglican clergyman. Brevifolia from the Latin 'brevis' meaning short and 'folium' meaning a leaf.
Distribution and status
Found in the southern part of South Australia, from the southern Eyre Peninsula, Mount Lofty Ranges to the South-East, growing on coastal and inland sclerophyll woodlands, often on sandy soils. Also found in Victoria. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in Victoria.
Herbarium regions: Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Broom-like shrub to 1 m high with rigid, terete and striate branchlets to 2 mm thick, glabrous. Juvenile leaves occasionally present; 2 lobed to hatchet-shaped, to 30 mm long and 10 mm wide, fleshy. Phyllodes reduced to spines, regularly spaced, to 5 mm long; terete, pungent, oblique to branches. Inflorescences axillary with solitary or clusters of pink-apricot to brown-red pea-flowers. Flowering between August and October. Fruits are dark brown asymmetrically triangular pod to 15 mm long and 10 mm wide, with one seed inside. Seeds are orange-brown with black mottled reniform seed to 4 mm long and 2 mm wide, and a cream aril. Seed embryo type is bent.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between October and December. Collect maturing brown seed pods from the plant using secateurs or by hand. Plant is prickly so it is advisable to wear gloves. Leave the pods in a paper bag to dry for at least a week. Rub the pods gently with a rubber bung to dislodge the seeds. Use a sieve to separate the seeds from unwanted material. Store the dried fruit heads with a desiccant such as dried silica beads or dry rice, in an air tight container in a cool and dry place. This species has physical dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate (e.g. nicking or softening the seed coat).
| Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSB | 1,100 (28.27 g) | 100+ | 12-Dec-2006 | TST136 Kangaroo Island |
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.