Botanical art
Common names
Horned Hop-bush
Etymology
Dodonaea named after Rembert Dodoens (1517-1585), a Flemish physician and botanist, also known under his Latinized name Rembertus Dodonaeus. Hexandra from the Greek 'hex' meaning six and 'andros' meaning male, referring to the species having six stamens.
Distribution and status
Found in southern South Australia, except the South-east growing in mallee scrub communities dominated by tree species, on alkaline soils and on sandy loams overlying limestone. Also found in Western Australia and Victoria. Native. Common in South Australia. Very rare in Western Australia. Rare in Victoria.
Herbarium regions: Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, Kangaroo Island, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)
Plant description
Dioecious spreading shrub to 0.6 m high. Leaves simple, sessile, linear, channelled below, convex above, acute, to 1.5 cm long and 0.2 cm wide, viscous, with raised glands, glabrous, margin entire and strongly revolute. Flowers solitary, or rarely 2 together, axillary or terminal with small yellow-green flowers. Sepals 3 and stamens 6. Flowering between May and July. Fruits are red-brown balloon-like capsule 3-angled to 7 mm long and 8 mm wide, glabrous. Seeds are black globular seed to 2 mm long and 2 mm wide with a large aril. Seed embryo type is folded.
Seed collection and propagation
Collect seeds between September and December. Collect capsules that contain hard black seeds, usually when capsule is turning red or brown. Place capsules in a tray and leave to dry for 1 to 2 weeks. Then rub the capsules 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. This species has physiological dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate (e.g. nicking the seed coat).
| Location | No. of seeds (weight grams) | Number of plants | Date collected | Collection number Collection location | Date stored | % Viability | Storage temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BGA MSB | 15,800 (47.65 g) 15,800 (47.65 g) | 29-Nov-2005 | DJD255 Murray | 8-Aug-2006 | 90% | -18°C | |
| BGA | 1,646 (4.454 g) | 50+ | 28-Nov-2022 | BKB138 Southern Lofty | 20-Jun-2023 | 20% | -18°C |
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.