Sturt's Desert Pea
Sturt's Desert Pea, at Melbourne Zoo
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Fabales Family: Fabaceae Subfamily: Faboideae Tribe: Galegeae Genus: Swainsona Species: S. Plants are living Organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. The flowering plants or angiosperms ( Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta) are the most widespread group Magnoliopsida is the Botanical name for a class of Flowering plants By definition the class will include the family Magnoliaceae, but its Fabales is an order of Flowering plants It is included in the rosid group of the Eudicots in the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group II Fabaceae or Leguminosae is a large and economically important family of Flowering plants which is commonly known as the legume family, pea Faboideae is a Subfamily of the Flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae Galegeae is a tribe of the subfamily Faboideae. The tribe is found mostly in the northern hemisphere but can also be found in Australia Africa and South America Swainsona is a large genus of Flowering plants native to Australia and part of the family Fabaceae ( Legumes. formosa
Binomial name
Swainsona formosa (G. Don) Joy Thomps. George Don ( 17 May 1798 – 25 February 1856) was a Botanist.

Sturt's Desert Pea is an Australian plant in the genus Swainsona, named after English botanist Isaac Swainson, famous for its distinctive blood-red leaf-like flowers, each with a bulbous black centre, or "boss". For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Swainsona is a large genus of Flowering plants native to Australia and part of the family Fabaceae ( Legumes. Isaac Swainson (1746 - 1812 was the son of John Swainson (d1750 yeoman of High House Hawkshead Lancashire. It is one of Australia's best known wildflowers. A wildflower (or wild flower) is a Flower that grows wild meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted It is native to the arid regions of central and north-western Australia, and its range extends into all mainland Australian states with the exception of Victoria [1]. In general terms the Climate of a local or region is said to be arid when it is characterized by a severe lack of available Water, to the extent of hindering

Specimens of Sturt's Desert Pea were first collected by William Dampier on 1st September 1699. William Dampier ( 5 September 1651 (baptised &ndash March 1715 was an English Buccaneer, sea captain Author and scientific observer Events 462 - Possible start of first Byzantine indiction cycle. These specimens are today in the Sherardian herbarium at Oxford University [2]. In Botany, a Herbarium is a collection of preserved Plant specimens The University of Oxford (informally "Oxford University" or simply "Oxford" located in the city of Oxford, Oxfordshire, England is the

The taxonomy of Sturt's Desert Pea has been changed on a number of occasions. Taxonomy is the practice and science of classification The word comes from the Greek, taxis (meaning 'order' 'arrangement' and, nomos It was initially treated in the 17th Century in the genus Clianthus as Clianthus dampieri [3], and later became more widely known as Clianthus formosus (formosus is Latin for "beautiful"). As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar However it was later reclassified under the genus Swainsona as Swainsona formosa, the name by which it is officially known today.

A further reclassification to Willdampia formosa was proposed in the publication Western Australian Naturalist in 1999; however this proposal was rejected by the scientific community in 2000. Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) ^[1].

The common name honours Charles Sturt, who recorded seeing large quantities of the flowers while exploring central Australia in 1844; the second version of the scientific name honours the naturalist Isaac Swainson, and the third (rejected) version of the scientific name was intended to honour the explorer William Dampier. Captain Charles Napier Sturt (28 April 1795 – 16 June 1869 was an English explorer of Australia, part of the European Exploration of Australia Year 1844 ( MDCCCXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Isaac Swainson (1746 - 1812 was the son of John Swainson (d1750 yeoman of High House Hawkshead Lancashire. William Dampier ( 5 September 1651 (baptised &ndash March 1715 was an English Buccaneer, sea captain Author and scientific observer

19th century illustration

Sturt's Desert Pea is a member of Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae, however its flowers are so different from its relations that it is almost unrecognisable as a member of the pea family [4]. The flowers are around 9 centimetres in length and grow in clusters of around half a dozen on thick vertical stalks, which spring up every 10-15 centimetres along the prostrate stems, which may be 1 to 1. A centimetre ( American spelling: centimeter, symbol cm) is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one hundredth 5 metres in length. The plant blooms from spring to summer, particularly after rain. There is a natural pure white form, as well as hybridised varieties which can have flowers ranging from red to pink, as well as yellow, with or without the central boss [5]. In Biology, hybrid has two meanings The first meaning is the result of interbreeding between two animals or plants of different taxa. Approximately 15 silky grey-green leaves rise from each prostrate branch; both branches and leaves are covered with soft hair-like filaments. The fruit is a legume, about 5 centimetres long, and yields several flat, kidney-shaped seeds at maturity. A legume is a Plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae or a Fruit of these specific plants

Most forms of the plant are low-growing or prostrate, however in the Pilbara region of north-western Australia varieties growing as tall as 2 metres have been noted [6]. For the Fly Genus, see Pilbara (fly. The Pilbara is a The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International

Life cycle

A short-lived perennial, it is often treated as an annual when domestically grown. A perennial plant or perennial ( Latin per, "through" annus, "year" is a Plant that lives for more than Botanically an annual plant is a Plant that usually germinates, Flowers and dies in one Year. However if the roots are left undisturbed, flowering may resume in the next season.

It is well adapted to life as a desert plant. The small seeds have a long viability, and can germinate after many years. Germination is the process whereby growth emerges from a period of dormancy It has a hard seed coat, which protects the seed from harsh arid environments until the next rainfall, inhibits germination in normal domestic environments. Growers can overcome this by either nicking the seed coat away from the 'eye' of the seed, or by rubbing the seed gently between pieces of sandpaper, or by replicating a desert rainstorm and placing the seed in very warm (but not boiling) water and leaving it to soak overnight. Boiling water should not be used as beneficial bacteria on the seed coat would be destroyed [7].

Once germinated, seedlings quickly establish a deep taproot, vital for desert survival. A Plant 's taproot is a straight tapering Root that grows vertically down This means that if domestically grown, they should either be planted in their intended final location, transplanted as soon as possible after germination, or grafted as a seedling on to a different root such as the bladder senna, Colutea Arborescens. They do not tolerate disturbance of their roots but, once established in well-drained soil, require little and infrequent watering, and can withstand extreme heat and sunshine, as well as light frosts.

Use as emblem

Sturt's Desert Pea (described as Clianthus formosus) was adopted as the floral emblem of the state of South Australia on 23 November 1961. This is a list of Australian Floral emblems. The selection of a national emblem in the early years of the twentieth century was hotly contested between those who supported the South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country Events 800 - Charlemagne arrives at Rome to investigate the alleged crimes of Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. It is not endangered, but it is illegal to collect specimens of the plant from Crown land without a permit. An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming Extinct because it is either few in numbers or threatened by changing environmental or predation Crown land is a designated area belonging to The Crown, the equivalent of an entailed estate that passed with the Monarchy and could not be The plants must not be collected from private land without the written consent of the land owner.

Sturt's Desert Pea has appeared in several releases of sets of six Australian postage stamps depicting Australian floral emblems (issued in 1968, 1971 and 1975) [8]. A postage stamp is an adhesive paper evidence of pre-paying a fee for postal services Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. Year 1975 ( MCMLXXV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Sturt's Desert Pea, at Uluru (Ayer's Rock), Australia

References

External links

• South Australian Government Floral Emblem (official website)
• Australian emblems - South Australia (Australian National Botanic Gardens website)
• Aboriginal myth about the Sturt's Desert Pea
• Info Page from the Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plants (hosted by Charles Sturt University, New South Wales. Charles Sturt University ( CSU) is an Australian multi-campus University in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory
• Large image of Sturt's Desert Pea
• Sturt's Desert Pea Fact-sheet from Gardening Australia, a TV programme of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly abbreviated to the 'ABC' is Australia's national public broadcaster.
• Oxford University Herbaria
• Sturt's Desert Pea costume (designed for the South Australian Centenary in 1936 by Thelma Thomas Afford, of Adelaide). Year 1936 ( MCMXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a