Botanical art
Common names
Kangaroo Island Terete-leaf Bush-pea
Short-leaf Bush-pea
Etymology
Pultenaea named after Richard Pulteney (1730-1801), an English physician, botanist and biographer of Carl Linnaeus. Teretifolia from the Latin 'teres' meaning rounded and 'folium' meaning a leaf; referring to the leaves having a round cross-section. Brachyphylla from the Greek 'brachys' meaning short and 'phylla' suffix for leaf; referring to the shorter leaves in this variety.
Distribution and status
Endemic to South Australia and found only on the western side of Kangaroo Island. Native. Rare in South Australia.
Herbarium region: Kangaroo Island
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Slender shrub with stems to 60 cm long covered in soft hairs. Leaves terete,3-5 mm long, obtuse, mostly crowded at the ends of the branchlets, furrowed by the curved margins, upper surface glabrous and hidden by the lower, Inflorescence with 1 or 2 yellow and red pea-flowers, rarely few in heads. This variety differ from the other variety found in South Australia Pultenaea teretifolia var. teretifolia which have leaves mostly 7-10 mm long, sometimes to 13 mm and flowers 3-5, sometimes to 6, terminally condensed on short branchlets. Flowering between October and November. Fruits are hairy brown ovoid pod. Seed embryo type is bent.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between November and January. 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. 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.