Plants of
South Australia
Swainsona oligophylla
Fabaceae
Clay-pan Swainson-pea
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Adelaide
Arkaroola
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Botanical art

Kath Alcock paintings: 3

Prior names

Swainsona concinna

Etymology

Swainsona named after Isaac Swainson (1746-1812), an English scientist and horticulturalist who had a private botanic garden near London. Oligophylla from the Greek 'oligos' meaning few and 'phyllon' meaning leaves; referring to the few leaflets along the leave.

Distribution and status

Found in the north-eastern part of South Australia, growing on red sand in clay pans and plains. Also found in the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales. Native. Common in South Australia. Common in the other states.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Lake Eyre, Gairdner-Torrens, Flinders Ranges, Eastern
NRM regions: Alinytjara Wilurara, Northern and Yorke, South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

A prostrate or occasionally ascending perennial herb with numerous hairy stems arising from a taproot. Leaves to 4 cm long with 5-7 leaflets with purple pea-flowers. Flowering between August and October. Fruits are long dark brown pod 12 mm long and 4 mm wide covered with minute hairs. Seeds are orange to brown, semi-flat reniform seed to 3 mm long with a wrinkled surface. Seed embryo type is bent.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between September and December. Collect mature pods, dark brown containing hard seeds. Mature pods can be found lying on the ground next to the plant containing hard seeds. When dried the pods become hard and difficult to open. Use a rubber bung to rub the pods or break the pods open with your fingers 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%. This species has physical dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate (e.g. nicking or softening the seed coat).

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
17,600 (42.62 g)
17,600 (42.62 g)
100+28-Sep-2007DJD876
Lake Eyre
19-Sep-2008100%-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.