Plants of
South Australia
Boerhavia dominii
Nyctaginaceae
Tah-vine,
Tar-vine
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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
Yunta
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Botanical art

Kath Alcock paintings: 2

Prior names

Boerhavia diffusa, partly

Common names

Tah-vine

Tar-vine

Etymology

Boerhavia named after Hermann Boerhaave (1668-1738), a professor of medicine, botany and chemistry at the University of Leiden. Dominii named after Domin, Karel (1882 - 1953), a Czech botanist and politician who published a series of important works on Australian taxonomy, following his visit to Australia in 1909 as part of an expedition to Java and Australia.

Distribution and status

Found across much of the eastern side of South Australia except in the South-east. Also found in all other mainland States. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in the other States.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Lake Eyre, Gairdner-Torrens, Flinders Ranges, Eastern, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Perennial herb with a woody tap root, prostrate or decumbent with stems to 1 m long, either glabrous or covered in short hairs. Leaf blades lanceolate to broad-ovate, acute to emarginate to 35mm long and 15 mm wide; hairy on both surfaces. Flowers pink, mauve or white appearing between December and May. Fruits are woody fruit covered in glandular-hairs and very sticky. Seeds are brown woody ovoid seed to 5 mm long and 3 wide, with 5 ribs.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between April and July. Collect mature fruits, those that are fat and hard. Place the fruits in a tray and leave to dry for 1-2 weeks. No further cleaning is required if only the fruits are collected. If with other materials, use a sieve to separate any 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. Seed viability is usually high.

Seeds stored:
  Hide
LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)		Number
of plants		Date
collected		Collection number
Collection location		Date
stored		% ViabilityStorage
temperature
 
MSB
4,300 (14.4 g)		501-Apr-2010DJD1819
Flinders Ranges		65%
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.
We acknowledge the contributions of the South Australian Seed Conservation Centre, the Botanic Gardens of South Australia, and the Department for Environment and Water.