Botanical art
Prior names
Swainsona oroboides ssp. hirsuta
Swainsona oroboides var. hirsuta
Etymology
Swainsona named after Isaac Swainson (1746-1812), an English scientist and horticulturalist who had a private botanic garden near London. Behriana named after Hermann H. Behr (1818-1904), a German-American doctor, entomologist and botanist, who collected in South Australia.
Distribution and status
Once found in the Mount Lofty Ranges and the lower South-east, growing on light or occasionally heavy soils in moist grassland and woodland. Now only found in the northern and eastern side of the Mount Lofty Ranges. Also found in New South Wales and Victoria. Native. Endangered in South Australia. This SA Seed Bank collected and banked 2,400 seeds from Bagot's Well and 260 seeds from Callington in 2016 with the support of Natural Resources Adelaide & Mount Lofty Ranges. A number of plants are being propagated for a Seed Production (SPA) area at the Botanic Gardens to assist current recovery projects. Rare in Victoria.
Herbarium regions: Flinders Ranges, Northern Lofty, Murray, Southern Lofty, Green Adelaide
NRM regions: Northern and Yorke, South Australian Murray-Darling Basin
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Prostrate or low growing perennial herb to 15 cm high with many slender stems arising from a stout stock-root. Leaves to 50 mm long with 9-13 leaflets covered in fine hairs. Inflorescence purple pea-flowers in small clusters at the end of a long stalk. Flowering between August and October. Fruits are black stiff pod to 18 mm long, covered in fair hairs. Seeds are light brown to orange or mottled, semi-flat reniform seed to 2 mm long and 1.5 mm wide, with a wrinkled surface. Seed embryo type is bent.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between October and December. Collect mature pods, those turning black and contain hard seeds. Mature pods can be found lying on the ground next to the plant. When dried the pods become hard and difficult to open. Use a rubber bung to rub the pods or break the pods open with your fingers 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 80%. 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 | 1,950 (5.3 g) | 100+ | 23-Oct-2008 | MJT215 Northern Lofty | 90% | ||
BGA | 2,900 (5.24 g) | 50+ | 11-Nov-2010 | MJT327 Murray | 1-Jan-2012 | 80% | -18°C |
BGA | 110 | 10 | 30-Oct-2015 | River Road Northern Lofty | 2-May-2017 | N/C | -18°C |
BGA | 260 (0.364 g) | 6 | 25-Nov-2016 | MJT327 Murray | 1-Nov-2017 | 95% | -18°C |
BGA | 665 (1.33 g) | 12 | 6-Dec-2017 | Kanmantoo Murray | 30-Jun-2018 | 90% | -18°C |
BGA | 3,800 (6.26 g) | 50+ | 31-Oct-2018 | DJD3808 Murray | 24-Apr-2019 | 100% | -18°C |
BGA | 340 (0.713 g) | 30+ | 14-Nov-2018 | Moppa Northern Lofty | 24-Apr-2019 | N/C | -18°C |
BGA | 650 (1.460 g) | 10+ | 31-Mar-2020 | TST1465 Murray | 28-Jun-2021 | 65% | -18°C |
BGA | 1,700 (5.02 g) | 50+ | 1-Dec-2016 | Bagot Well Northern Lofty | 28-Jun-2021 | 65% | -18°C |
BGA | 1,250 (2.260 g) | 20 | 16-Nov-2022 | Keyneton Northern Lofty | 20-Jun-2023 | -18°C |