Plants of
South Australia
Calandrinia calyptrata
Montiaceae
Small-leaf Parakeelya,
Pink Purslane,
Small Parakeelya
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Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
Innamincka
Marla
Marree
Mount Gambier
Oodnadatta
Renmark
Wudinna
Keith
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Botanical art

Kath Alcock paintings: 2

Prior names

Parakeelya calyptrata

Calandrinia dipetala

Common names

Small-leaf Parakeelya

Pink Purslane

Small Parakeelya

Etymology

Calandrinia named after Jean-Louis Calandrini (1703-1758), a Swiss scientist, professor of mathematics and philosophy. Calyptrata from the Latin 'calyptratus' meaning bearing a cap-like covering, possibly referring to the persistent sepals around the capsules.

Distribution and status

Found in the southern part of South Australia except the lower South-east, growing in sandy and gravelly soils, often associated with granite. Also found in Western Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in the other States.
Herbarium regions: Lake Eyre, Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
NRM regions: Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Kangaroo Island, Northern and Yorke, South Australian Arid Lands, South Australian Murray-Darling Basin, South East
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Prostrate, often reddish herb with stems to 20 cm long. Leaves basal and on lower part of flowering stems, alternate, sessile, oblanceolate to oblong to 3.5 cm long and 7 mm wide. Inflorescence open spike with pale pink flowers, sepals broad-ovate, persistent, petals 5, obovate to elliptic. Flowering between August to October. Fruits are reddish-brown ovoid capsule to 3.6 mm long, just exceeding the sepals, with 3 valves splitting at the apex and releasing numerous seeds. Seeds are shiny reddish-brown reniform seed to 0.8 mm long and 0.7 mm wide, with a mesh-like surface. Seed embryo type is peripheral.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between September and December. Collect mature capsules, those that are turning a red-brown colour and contain brown seeds. Place the capsules in a tray and leave to dry for one to two weeks. Then rub the capsules gently by hand 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. Seed viability is usually high.

Seeds stored:
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LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
 
MSB

2,400 (0.19 g)
17-Nov-2005DJD470
South Eastern
BGA51,000 (2.81 g)501-Oct-2007RJB74764
South Eastern
19-Sep-200890%-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.