Plants of
South Australia
Billardiera sp. Yorke Peninsula (P.C.Heyligers 80164)
Pittosporaceae
Coastal Apple-berry,
Lehmann's Apple-berry
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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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Prior names

Billardiera lehmanniana

Common names

Coastal Apple-berry

Lehmann's Apple-berry

Etymology

Billardiera named after Jacques-Julien de Labillardiere (1755-1834), a 19th century French botanist who visited Western Australia and Tasmania with D'Entrecasteaux expedition and named many new plant species. Manuscipt script name refers to where the species was first collected.

Distribution and status

Endemic to South Australia and found only in a few areas on the lower Eyre Peninsula and Yorke Peninsula, growing on coastal dunes. Native. Very rare in South Australia.
Herbarium regions: Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Climbing perennial shrub with green, lanceolate leaves. Flowers are yellow, bell-shaped, appearing between August and December. Fruits are a cylindrical drupe, green and hard when immature and soft when ripe. Seeds are dark brown to red, flat reniform seeds about 2.5 mm long and 2 mm wide, covered with wrinkles. Seed embryo type is linear underdeveloped.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between January and March. Pick mature fruits that are soft or have dark brown seeds inside. Clean ripe fruits as soon as possible as it will go hard if left to dry too long. Rub the fruits in water with your hands to dislodge the seeds from the fruit. Pour the mixture into a sieve to separate the seeds from the flesh. Place the wet seeds in a tray lined with paper and leave to dry for 1 to 2 days. 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 three collections, the seed viability was average to high, ranging from 75% to 95%. This species has physiological dormancy that need to be overcome for the seed to germinate.

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
2,000 (4.01 g)
1,600 (3.25 g)
40+8-Feb-2006DJD382
Yorke Peninsula
10-Aug-200685%-18°C
BGA4,000 (8.18 g)57-Mar-2006TEE13
Yorke Peninsula
10-Aug-200675%-18°C
BGA2,470 (6.67 g)18-Jan-2007DJD746
Yorke Peninsula
1-Aug-200795%+5°C, -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.