Plants of
South Australia
Lepyrodia valliculae
Restionaceae
Kangaroo Island Scale-rush
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Regional Species Conservation Assessments per IBRA subregion.
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Vulnerable
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Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
Innamincka
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Etymology

Lepyrodia​ from the Greek 'lepyrodes' meaning furnished with bracts, referring to the bracteate flowers. Valliculae is the diminutive form of the Latin word 'valles', meaning valley, so 'little valley', referring to the location of the type specimen collected from Back Valley, near Encounter Bay.

Distribution and status

Endemic to South Australia and found only on the western side of Kangaroo Island and on the Fleurieu Peninusla, growing on laterite soil in open area in heathy woodland. Native. Uncommon in South Australia.
Herbarium regions: Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island
NRM regions: Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, Kangaroo Island
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Small perennial sedge with filiform, simple, erect, stems to 30 cm high, basal sheaths and those along the stem appressed with short points. Flowers erect, conical, approximate or rather distant, but never clustered in a narrow spike-like panicle, to 7 cm long; segments acute, 3-4 mm long, the outer segments slightly exceeding the inner, all rather larger in the female then the males; no staminodes or rudimentary ovary. Flowering between October to February. Capsule subglobular, to 1.5 mm long and rather broader along spike at the tip of stems. Seeds are tiny brown ellipsoid seed to 1.2 mm long and 0.8 mm wide, with a fine smooth and shiny surface. Seed embryo type is broad.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between November and February. Collect mature heads, those turning brown. Either cut the whole heads or strip the fruit from the heads with your hands. Place the heads in a tray and leave to dry for one to two weeks. Then rub the heads with a rubber bung to dislodge the seeds. 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.

Fire Response

Obligate re-spouter and re-seeder.

Longevity: >20 years

Time to flowering: 4 to 5 years

Recovery work

In 2020-2021 this species was assessed post-fire in 1 year and 2 year old fire scars. Further populations will be assessed and seeds collected on Kangaroo Island in 2021–2022. Germination screening testing the response to fire cues will be undertaken in 2021.This project was supported by the Project Phoenix program.

 

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
7,300 (2.04 g)
7,300 (2.04 g)
100+14-Nov-2006DJD671
Kangaroo Island
28-Jun-2021100%+5°C, -18°C
BGA12,900 (2.260 g)500+27-Sep-2021JRG826
Kangaroo Island
7-Jul-2022100%-18°C, -80°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.