''Hardenbergia violacea'' is a species of flowering plant in the family

Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenc ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to Australia. It is known in Australia by the common names false sarsaparilla, purple coral pea and waraburra. Elsewhere it is also called purple twining-pea, vine-lilac and wild sarsaparilla. It is a prostrate or climbing

subshrub A subshrub (Latin ''suffrutex'') or dwarf shrub is a short shrub, and is a woody plant. Prostrate shrub is a related term. "Subshrub" is often used interchangeably with "bush".Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Der ...

with egg-shaped to narrow lance-shaped leaves and

raceme A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

s of mostly purple flowers. Hardenbergia violacea HC1

Description

''Hardenbergia violacea'' is a prostrate or climbing sub-shrub with wiry stems up to or more long. The leaves are egg-shaped to lance-shaped, long and wide on a petiole about long. The leaves are leathery, glabrous and paler on the lower surface. The flowers are arranged in racemes of between twenty and forty flowers, each on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

mostly long. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s are long and joined at the base, forming a bell-shaped tube with triangular teeth. The petals are about long, mostly purple, the standard petal with a yellowish spot and a notch on the summit, the wings are egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base and the

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

is curved. Flowering mostly occurs from August to November and the fruit is a

pod Pod or POD may refer to: Biology * Pod (fruit), a type of fruit of a flowering plant * Husk or pod of a legume * Pod of whales or other marine mammals * "-pod", a suffix meaning "foot" used in taxonomy Electronics and computing * Proper ort ...

long containing between six and eight kidney-shaped seeds. The flowers are usually purple or violet, but pink, white and other colours sometimes occur. ''H. violacea'' regrows from its roots after

fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition ...

.False (or Native) Sarsaparilla
, Paddock Plants, NSW Department of Primary Industries (2010). The roots were experimented with by early European settlers as a substitute for sarsaparilla.

Taxonomy

False sarsaparilla was first formally described in 1793 by

George Voorhelm Schneevoogt George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

who gave it the name ''Glycine violacea'' in his book, ''Icones Plantarum Rariorum''. In 1940, William T. Stearn changed the name to ''Hardenbergia violacea''.

Distribution and habitat

''Hardenbergia violacea'' grows in a variety of habitats but is more common in open forests, woodlands and undisturbed areas, from sea level to about above sea level. It occurs in eastern Queensland, eastern New South Wales, south-eastern Victoria and southern South Australia. There is a single population in Tasmania, where the species is listed as "endangered" under the Tasmanian Government ''

Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 The ''Threatened Species Protection Act 1995'' (TSP Act), is an act of the Parliament of Tasmania that provides the statute relating to conservation of flora and fauna. Its long title is An Act to provide for the protection and management of th ...

''.

Use in horticulture

''Hardenbergia violacea'' is widely grown as a garden plant, with many

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture, ...

s now available. It is hardy in mild and coastal areas of the United Kingdom where temperatures do not fall below , but it does require a sheltered, south or west facing situation. Alternatively it may be grown indoors with full daylight, for instance in an unheated conservatory or greenhouse. It has been given the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

. The seeds of ''H. violacea'' remain viable for many years and propagation is from seeds that have been treated by adding boiling water to them or by abrading the seed coat. Plants prefer full sun in well-drained soil, are moderately frost-tolerant and respond well to pruning.

References

External links

Australian Cultivar Registration Authority - ''Hardenbergia violacea'' 'Happy Wanderer'
{{Taxonbar, from=Q386546 Fabales of Australia Flora of Queensland Flora of Victoria (Australia) Flora of Tasmania Flora of New South Wales Flora of South Australia Plants described in 1793 Garden plants