Flora Sight

Flora Sight It's All About the Plants! Flora specialists - surveying, plant sales, connecting people, education

As botanists we have a hyper focus on the ground and canopy, unlike fauna ecologists we move at a different pace through...
17/06/2026

As botanists we have a hyper focus on the ground and canopy, unlike fauna ecologists we move at a different pace through the bush. As a result we have some intimate experiences an observe some fascinating things.

On a recent walk at Mount Barker summit we almost walk past this patch of Pseudoplectania nigrella, commonly known as the ebony cup. It is a species of fungi in the family Sarcosomataceae. The fruit bodies of this saprobic fungus are small blackish cups, typically up to 2 cm (0.8 in) broad, they are normally in pine needles, however once again it was the magical Sheoak needles.

We are collecting some for the Fungi expert Pam Cacheside to get confirmation of the Id. Like invertebrates, Fungi are numerous and Pam has said that it could even be a new species.

29/05/2026

The importance of dead fallen logs and debris, is immeasurable. Sheoak phyllode medium = epic orchid growing medium. Shout out to Les Nesbitt.

21/05/2026

Magnificent Montacute

Feeling puffed and pumped after surveying and traversing through steep terrain, shaded riparian gullies and enjoying see...
21/05/2026

Feeling puffed and pumped after surveying and traversing through steep terrain, shaded riparian gullies and enjoying seeing good stands of the ecological threatened community Eucalyptus viminalis var. viminalis.

Hats off to the sixth creek catchment group for their well thought out w**d management strategies, especially around a rarer Silky Tea-tree perched swamp and clever plantings.
threatened flora and communities.

For our recent workshops 'Plants under pressure' we took a different approach, creating posters with a hint of humour to...
15/05/2026

For our recent workshops 'Plants under pressure' we took a different approach, creating posters with a hint of humour to communicate goat impact across the landscape.
Narrow leaf emubush is common across the landscape, however is heavily impacted where goats are present seedling recrutiment is rare. This species is considered an 'icecream' plant ecologically important and culturally significant plants.

And what does it mean when less palatable (Curry Bush) species are the only plants left in the species composition.

Left unchecked an ecosystem can easily be exhausted, ultimately crashing.

During the workshops, someone kindly point out the goat with 5 legs, which could be a possibilty if near Paralana hot springs on Arkaroola.

flora # goat impact plants # curry plants

Niche species: The nationally and state Vulnerable Tecticornia flabelliformis (Bead Samphire) is a true gypsophile, adap...
01/05/2026

Niche species: The nationally and state Vulnerable Tecticornia flabelliformis (Bead Samphire) is a true gypsophile, adapted to some of the harshest conditions in the landscape. It thrives on highly sodic clay soils and saline clay pans that are seasonally inundated with fresh water—environments known as sabkhas. Here, it typically forms dense colonies along the margins, where gypsum crystals often become visible as the soils dry over the summer months.

Despite its small stature (to around 20 cm), this species really puts on a show. As the fruiting spikelets mature and begin to break apart, they shift through a striking palette of colours, creating a vibrant display that’s hard to miss in the field. Adding to its character, the stems have a pale whitish-grey tone with a slightly gnarled, almost ancient appearance—classic of plants adapted to gypseous environments.

Fun fact: This species is winter-deciduous—during the colder, wetter months it drops its leaves and can look brown, dry, or even as though it’s dying back, before bursting back to life when conditions become favourable.

For more information and great photos - https://flora.sa.gov.au/taxon/33594-tecticornia-flabelliformis

Great day out collaborating with Acacia Park Consulting to deliver our Plants Under Pressure workshop 🌿We had a full hou...
08/04/2026

Great day out collaborating with Acacia Park Consulting to deliver our Plants Under Pressure workshop 🌿

We had a full house at the Community Hall, with 21 people coming along to build skills in:
• Monitoring total grazing pressure
• Understanding plant nutritional value
• Plant ID
• Field-based vegetation assessment

After the indoor session, we headed out to The Dutchmans Stern Conservation Park for a guided walk, finishing up in Quorn at the Pithi Kawi Bush Food Garden checking out perennial grasses in the landscape.

Thanks to the Arid Lands Landscape Board mob for organising this and getting the Northern & Yorke mob along.

Thanks to everyone who joined us – such a great group and a really enjoyable day all round!

Niche species - part 1Scleranthus pungens - Prickly Knawel, with a name that is not misleading, it has a very hard flowe...
31/03/2026

Niche species - part 1
Scleranthus pungens - Prickly Knawel, with a name that is not misleading, it has a very hard flower and prickly leaf. This species is a tough long lived perennial in the Caryophyllaceae family, which mostly consists of annuals in South Australia. It is similar to the mound forming Scleranthus biflorus found in sub-alpine to alpine areas in Tasmania.

It is relatively widespread from the Southern Fleurieu to Northern Flinders Ranges and Eyre Peninsula forming tight mounds and growing exclusively on extremely steep rocky terrain with skeletal soils. It is rare or near threatened in these regions, possibly due to grazing pressures, but more than likely due to where it grows. Pictured here looking slightly dull and yellow, but by winter they should be looking bright green. We are yet to see seedlings of this plant.

22/03/2026

Just in case you weren’t sick of seeing the Banksia, here is one more pic. This one was taken before it left Manjimup.

When undertaking w**d management for restoration, it is important to walk the site and mark all the native species and r...
29/01/2026

When undertaking w**d management for restoration, it is important to walk the site and mark all the native species and rarer plants. There are many rarer species in the Mount Lofty ranges in our Riparian areas which are in low numbers or often overlooked.

Hemarthria uncinata var. uncinata - mat grass is one example of an overlooked species. It can be found on the edge spring fed creeks growing in a symbiotic relationship with Eucalyptus viminalis ssp. cygentensis + Eucalyptus dalrympleana.

In appearance the folded trianglulated leaf and rhizomatous nature can look like Kikuyu.
It has no hairs on the stems, narrower leaves and this interesting flower spike.

If anyone is learning more about rarer species we are looking to run some workshops later this year.

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