Plants of
South Australia
Stenopetalum lineare
Brassicaceae
Narrow Thread-petal
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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
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Oodnadatta
Renmark
Wudinna
Keith
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Botanical art

Kath Alcock paintings: 7

Prior names

Stenopetalum trisectum

Stenopetalum croceum

Stenopetalum lineare var. canescens

Etymology

Stenopetalum from the Greek 'stenos' meaning narrow and 'petalon' meaning petals; referring to the narrow petals. Lineare from the Latin 'linaria' meaning linear; referring to the species linear leaves.

Distribution and status

Found across South Australia except on kangaroo island, growing in a variety of habitats and soil types. Also found in states. Native. Common in South Australia. Rare in Tasmania. Common in the other states.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Lake Eyre, Nullarbor, Gairdner-Torrens, Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Northern Lofty, Murray, Yorke Peninsula, Southern Lofty, South Eastern, Green Adelaide
NRM regions: Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, Alinytjara Wilurara, Eyre Peninsula, Northern and Yorke, South Australian Arid Lands, South Australian Murray-Darling Basin, South East
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Annual or rarely biennial herb to 50 cm high, at least base of plants covered in irregularly branched or stellate hairs. Basal leaves to 10 cm long, pinnately lobed, lobes lanceolate to linear, toothed or entire, stem leaves to 10 cm long, pinnately- or 3-lobed to entire and thread-like. Inflorescence a terminal spike with chocolate-brown to olive-green. Flowering between July and September. Fruits are brown oblong to slightly obovoid pod to 7 mm long and 2 mm wide. Seeds are brown ovoid seed to 1.2 mm long and 0.8 mm wide. Seed embryo type is bent.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between September and November. Collect maturing pods those turning pale brown with brown seeds inside. Be gentle with the pods as they split open easily. Place the pods in a tray and cover with paper to prevent seeds from popping out and leave to dry for a week. Then rub the dried pods 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. From one collection, the seed viability was high, at 100%.

Seeds stored:
  Hide
LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)		Number
of plants		Date
collected		Collection number
Collection location		Date
stored		% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA 
MSB		17,500 (3.92 g)
17,500 (3.92 g)		6026-Oct-2004MOL4632
Gairdner-Torrens		28-Mar-2006100%-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.
We acknowledge the contributions of the South Australian Seed Conservation Centre, the Botanic Gardens of South Australia, and the Department for Environment and Water.