Plants of
South Australia
Swainsona dictyocarpa
Fabaceae
Coondambo pea
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Regional Species Conservation Assessments per IBRA subregion.
Least concern
Near threatened
Rare
Vulnerable
Endangered
Critically endangered
Extinct
Data deficient
Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
Innamincka
Marla
Marree
Mount Gambier
Oodnadatta
Renmark
Wudinna
Keith
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Etymology

Swainsona named after Isaac Swainson (1746-1812), an English scientist and horticulturalist who had a private botanic garden near London. Dictyocarpa from the Greek 'dictyon' meaning network and 'carpos' meaning fruit; referring to the net-like veins on the fruit.

Distribution and status

Endemic to South Australia and found only in a restricted area near Bitter Well, Coondambo in red sandy plain. Native. Very rare in South Australia.
Herbarium region: Gairdner-Torrens
NRM region: South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Small erect or ascending herb to 15cm tall with several smooth stems arising from a taproot. Leaves 2-4 cm long with 3-7 leaflets. Flower purple. Fruits are dark brown papery pod 10-15mm long, smooth with a raised reticulate pattern on the surface. Seeds are light brown to orange, semi-flat reniform seeds to 3mm long with a wrinkled surface. Seed embryo type is bent.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between October and November. Collect mature pods, those turning brown and contain hard seeds. Mature pods can be found lying on the ground next to the plant. Place the pods in a tray and leave to dry for a week. When dried the pods can 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 need to be overcome for the seed to germinate (e.g. nicking or softening the seed coat).

Seeds stored:
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LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA 
MSB
13,500 (34.7 g)
6,200 (16 g)
200+4-Oct-2010DJD1930
Gairdner-Torrens
1-Jan-201280%-18°C
Location: BGA — the seeds are stored at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, MSB — the seeds are stored at the Millennium Seed Bank, Kew, England.
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.
Germination table:
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