Botanical art
Prior names
Pultenaea largiflorens var. latifolia
Common names
Twiggy Bush-pea
Etymology
Pultenaea named after Richard Pulteney (1730-1801), an English physician, botanist and biographer of Carl Linnaeus. Largiflorens from the Latin 'largus' meaning abundant and 'florens' meaning blooming; referring to the plentiful but small and non-showy flowers.
Distribution and status
Found in the Flinders Ranges, Mount Lofty Ranges and Kangaroo Island in South Australia, with an old records from the Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas, growing in open woodland or mallee. Also found in New South Wales and Victoria. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in the other states.
Herbarium regions: Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Rigid shrub 1 m high with terete hairy stems. Leaves alternate, narrowly obovate, to 9 mm long and 4 mm wide, apex obtuse, recurved, upper surface usually glabrous, paler than lower; lower surface with pale, appressed hairs. Inflorescence clusters of 2–8 yellow to orange pea-flowers. Flowering between August and December. Fruits are hairy brown ovoid pod to 4 mm long. Seeds are dark brown with black mottle reniform seed to 2.5 mm long and 1.5 mm wide, with a white aril. Seed embryo type is bent.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between October and December. Collect maturing pods, those that are brown or turning brown and contain hard seeds inside. Place the pods in a paper bag and leave to dry for one to two weeks. Then rub the pods with a rubber bung to dislodge the seeds. Use a sieve to separate the unwanted material. 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 one collection, the seed viability was high, at 100%. This species has physical dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate. The seed coat needs to be ruptured so that water can enter the seed before germination can occur. Methods to rupture the seed coat include scarification with sand paper or nicking the seed coat with a sharp blade or hot water treatment by immersion in boiling water.
| Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BGA MSB | 6,700 (21.3 g) 6,700 (21.3 g) | 40 | 13-Dec-2004 | DJD80 Southern Lofty | 31-Mar-2006 | 100% | -18°C |
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.