New Zealand Plant Conservation Network
  • Member login
  • Join
Facebook
  • Home
  • Flora
    • Flora species
    • Vascular
    • Non Vascular
    • Plant identification
    • Fungi
    • Make your own book
    • Quiz
  • Threats
    • Exotic Plants (Weeds)
    • Pest Animals
    • Other threats
  • Ecosystems
    • Plant communities
    • Ecosystem services
    • Novel ecosystems
  • Publications
    • Plant lists
    • Botanical Society journals
    • Newsletter
    • NZPCN publications
    • Documents
  • Conservation
    • Seedbank
    • Training
    • Restoration
    • Monitoring
    • Habitat protection
    • Funding
    • Botanic gardens
  • NZPCN
    • Members
    • Council members
    • Awards
    • David Given Scholarship
    • Events
    • Shop
    • Favourite Plant
    • Join
    • News
    • Donate
    • Trilepidea newsletter
    • Why join NZPCN?
  • Contact us
  • Help
    • FAQ
    • Query
    • Glossary

Search flora

You are here:
  1. Home
  2. Flora
  3. Flora species
  4. Carmichaelia appressa

Carmichaelia appressa

Kaitorete Spit.<br>Photographer: Melissa Hutchison, Date taken: 11/10/2014, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Kaitorete Spit.<br>Photographer: Melissa Hutchison, Date taken: 02/11/2015, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Kaitorete Spit.<br>Photographer: Melissa Hutchison, Date taken: 02/11/2015, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Kaitorete Spit.<br>Photographer: Melissa Hutchison, Date taken: 02/11/2015, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Carmichaelia appressa, Kaitorete Spit.<br>Photographer: John Barkla, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Carmichaelia appressa.<br>Photographer: Mike Thorsen, Licence: All rights reserved. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Kaitorete Spit.<br>Photographer: Melissa Hutchison, Date taken: 11/10/2014, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Seed. From cultivated plant.<br>Photographer: John Barkla, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0'>CC BY</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
In cultivation.<br>Photographer: Melissa Hutchison, Date taken: 10/10/2020, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
Kaitorete Spit.<br>Photographer: Melissa Hutchison, Date taken: 24/06/2015, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>. <a class='member-message' href='/nzpcn/why-join-nzpcn/' target='_blank'>Members can view a larger version of this image.</a>
No caption.<br>Photographer: David A. Norton, Licence: <a target='_blank' href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0'>CC BY-NC</a>.
Download PDF Comment on factsheet

NZPCN members can select up to 20 plant species and automatically create a full colour, fully illustrated A4 book describing them (in PDF format).

  • Find out more...
  • Join NZPCN...
Find in plant lists
iNaturalist NZ View observations NZ Flora Click here to view Te Papa View specimens Donate Support NZPCN

Common name

prostrate broom

Synonyms

None (first described in 1945)

Family

Fabaceae

Authority

Carmichaelia appressa G.Simpson

Flora category

Vascular – Native

Endemic taxon

Yes

Endemic genus

No

Endemic family

No

Structural class

Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons

NVS code

The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.

CRMAPP

Chromosome number

2n = 32

Current conservation status

  • Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2017

The threat classification status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2017 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2012 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: By Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, John W. Barkla, Shannel P. Courtney, Paul D. Champion, Leon R. Perrie, Sarah M. Beadel, Kerry A. Ford, Ilse Breitwieser, Ines Schönberger, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Peter B. Heenan and Kate Ladley. Please note, threat classifications are often suggested by authors when publications fall between NZTCS assessment periods – a suggested threat classification status has not been assessed by the NZTCS panel.

Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.

2017 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: RF, RR

Previous conservation statuses

2012 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: RF, RR

2009 | At Risk – Naturally Uncommon | Qualifiers: OL

2004 | Range Restricted

Brief description

Sprawling yellow-green mounds of apparently leafless branches inhabiting Kaitorete Spit and central Canterbury beaches. Branches yellow-green, oval in cross section, grooved. Leaves rarely present at tips of branches or in shaded parts of plant, consisting of three leaflets. Flowers pea-like, small, purple streaked, in small clusters. Fruit in a dry pod.

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand: South Island (Kaitorete Spit and probably also the mouth of Rakaia River)

Habitat

A species of gravelly sandy loam, stabilised sand dunes, and ridges of sand developed along the Kaitorete Spit.

Features

Prostrate, occasionally decumbent, densely branched shrub, 0.25-0.40 × 1.00-2.00 m. Branches 0.3-1.0 m long and up to 30 mm diameter, prostrate or weakly decumbent. Cladodes 50-150 × 1-2 mm, prostrate, sometimes weakly ascending, linear, striate, compressed, weakly plano-convex, light green to green-yellow, sparsely hairy to glabrous, apex subacute or obtuse; leaf nodes 7-11. Leaves 1-3-foliolate, present on seedlings and rarely on adults, terminal leaflet larger; lamina 2.0-5.0 × 1.02.5 mm, obovate, fleshy, green, upper and lower surfaces sparsely to moderately hairy, apex emarginate, base cuneate; petiole 1-11 mm long, sparsely hairy, green; petiolule < 0.25 mm long, glabrous, light green. Leaves on cladodes reduced to scales, < 0.5 mm long, broad-triangular, glabrous, apex subacute, margin hairy. Stipules c.0.5 × c.0.5 mm, free, triangular, upper surface glabrous, lower surface glabrous or with a few scattered hairs and becoming glabrous with age, apex acute, margin hairy. Inflorescence a raceme, 1-3 per node, each with 2-13 flowers. Peduncle 1.0-8.5 mm long, glabrous or sparsely hairy, green, occasionally flushed red. Bracts < c.0.5 mm long, triangular, glabrous, apex acute, margin hairy. Pedicel 2-4 mm long, glabrous to sparsely hairy, pale green. Bracteoles on upper part of pedicel, lanceolate, glabrous, green, occasionally flushed red, apex subacute, margin hairy. Calyx c.1.5 × 1.8-2.0 mm, campanulate, green, outer surface glabrous to sparsely hairy. Calyx lobes 0.2-0.3 mm long, triangular, inner surface glabrous, appressed to corolla, apex acute. Bud green or white. Standard 4-5 × 5-6 mm, obovate, patent, positioned in central part of keel, keeled, apex refuse; inner surface with a purple blotch, white margins, purple-veined; outer surface white, green at base, purple-veined; claw c.1 mm long, pale green. Wings 4.00-5.00 × 1.75-2.00 mm, oblong, longer than keel, apex obtuse; inner and outer surfaces white, and purple-veined; auricle rounded, white; claw c.1.5 mm long, pale green. Keel 3.5-4.0 × c.1.5 mm, apex obtuse; distal part of inner and outer surfaces purple, proximal part white; auricle < 0.5 mm long, rounded, pale green; claw c.1.5 mm long, pale green. Stamens 3.00-3.75 mm long; dorsal filaments connate for 7/8 of length, outer stamens free for c.0.5 mm. Pistil c.4 mm long, exserted beyond the stamens, glabrous; ovules 5-8. Pods 8-12 × 3-4 mm, elliptic to broad-oblong, laterally compressed, spreading, brown or grey, valves dehiscent; beak c.1 mm long, in a central apical position, stout, pungent-tipped. Seeds c.2.0 × c.1.5 mm, reniform, 2-per pod, dark purple or black, usually persistent on replum.

Similar taxa

Carmichaelia appressa is distinguished from C. australis R.Br. (at least on Kaitorete Spit) by its prostrate growth habit and yellow-green cladodes.

Flowering

October - January

Flower colours

Violet/Purple, White

Fruiting

December - May

Life cycle

Seeds are possibly dispersed by wind and granivory (Thorsen et al., 2009).

Propagation technique

Easily grown from seed and hardwood cuttings.

Threats

The habitat of C. appressa is very susceptible to damage by off-road motorbikes and 4WD vehicles and excavation for sand. A large part of its habitat is protected within a Scientific Reserve. For the time being the species seems secure.

Etymology

carmichaelia: After Carmichael, a botanist

Attribution

Description from Heenan (1996).

References and further reading

Heenan, P.B. 1996: A taxonomic revision of Carmichaelia (Fabaceae - Galegeae) in New Zealand (part II). New Zealand Journal of Botany 34: 157-177.

Thorsen, M.J.; Dickinson, K.J.M.; Seddon, P.J. 2009: Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 11(4): 285-309.

▲ Back to top
  • Home
  • Flora
  • Threats
  • Ecosystems
  • Publications
  • Conservation
  • NZPCN
  • Contact us
  • Help

© 2023 New Zealand Plant Conservation Network • Website by RS

Coastlands Plant Nursery Wildlands

Website sponsor

  • Home
  • Flora
    • Flora species
    • Vascular
      • Ferns
        • King fern
        • True ferns
        • Adder's tongue ferns
        • Fork ferns and whisk ferns
        • Horsetails
      • Conifers
        • Celery pines
        • Kauri
        • Podocarps
          • Podocarpus
          • Dacrydium
          • Prumnopitys
          • Dacrycarpus
          • Halocarpus
          • Lepidothamnus
          • Manoao
        • Cypress
      • Flowering plants
        • Parasites
          • Leafy mistletoes
          • Pygmy mistletoes
            • Korthalsella hosts
            • Dispersal of Korthalsella
            • Korthalsella flowers
            • Associates of Korthalsella
          • Root parasites
          • Saprophytes
        • Epiphytes
          • NZ
            • Typical
            • Occasional
            • Hemi-epiphytes
            • Ephemeral
            • NZ list
        • Monocots
          • Orchids
            • Structure
          • Grasses
        • Dicots
          • Hebes
          • Kowhai
          • Coprosma
          • Beech
          • Rata
        • Carnivorous
        • Deciduous plants
        • Aquatic plants
      • Poisonous natives
      • Threatened plant lists
      • What's a vascular plant?
      • Club mosses
    • Non Vascular
      • Bryophytes
        • Liverworts
        • Mosses
        • Hornworts
      • Algae
        • Seaweeds
      • Lichens
    • Plant identification
      • Written descriptions
      • Experts
      • Plant keys
        • Key to parasitic plant genera
      • Collecting plants
        • Should I collect
        • Choosing a specimen
        • Field notes
        • Fresh plant material
        • Pressing and drying
        • Mounting specimens
        • Labelling specimens
    • Fungi
    • Make your own book
    • Quiz
  • Threats
    • Exotic Plants (Weeds)
      • Unwanted organisms
      • DOC weeds
      • Plant me instead
      • Pest Plant Accord
    • Pest Animals
      • Mammals
        • Mustelids
        • Rodents
        • Ungulates
        • Possums
      • Fish
      • Insects
    • Other threats
      • Natural events
        • Insects
      • Human induced
        • Habitat loss
        • Collection
        • Climate change
  • Ecosystems
    • Plant communities
      • Dunes
        • Volcanic
        • Coastal
          • Pingao research
          • What you can do
          • Common species
          • Research on dunes
          • Threats
      • Wetlands
        • Estuaries
          • Common estuarine species
          • Research on estuaries
        • Ephemeral
        • Restiad peat bogs
      • Forests
        • Kauri-podocarp-broadleaved
        • Podocarp broadleaved
        • Beech
      • Scrub/shrublands
        • Geothermal
          • Distribution of geothermal vegetation
          • Geothermal plants
          • Geothermal vegetation types
          • Threats to geothermal vegetation
        • Frost flat/hollow
        • Manuka fens
        • Gumlands
      • Grasslands
        • Tussock grasslands
      • Bare ground
        • Braided rivers
        • Alpine
        • Cliff
        • Scree and boulderfields
        • Shingle beaches
      • Herbfields
        • Saltpan
    • Ecosystem services
    • Novel ecosystems
  • Publications
    • Plant lists
      • How to prepare a plant list
      • National plant lists
      • Plant lists by region
      • Search plant lists
    • Botanical Society journals
    • Newsletter
    • NZPCN publications
    • Documents
  • Conservation
    • Seedbank
      • Project 2 - Alpine flora and the Forget-Me-Nots
      • Project 3 - Kowhai and its relatives
      • Project 1 - Pohutukawa, Rata and Myrtaceae
      • Project 4 - Podocarps and trees of the forest
    • Training
      • Module 1: Plant life
      • Module 2: Covenants
      • Module 3: Propagation
      • Module 4: Wetlands
      • Pilot course 2006
    • Restoration
      • Gardening
        • Being weed wise
        • Garden plants
          • Ferns
          • Climbers
          • Trees and shrubs
          • Broad-leaved herbs
          • Grass-like herbs
        • Attracting wildlife
        • Planting for lizards
          • Rules
      • Species recovery
        • Plant translocations
      • Ecological restoration
        • Case studies
          • Tavora Reserve
          • Waiwhakareke
      • Revegetation
      • Eco-sourcing
      • Find a restoration group
    • Monitoring
      • Number count
        • Number count method
        • Pros and cons of number counts
        • Data analysis and interpretation
      • Presence/absence surveys
        • Presence/absence survey methods
        • Pros and cons of presence/absence surveys
        • Data analysis and interpretation
      • Mapping spatial extent
        • Pros and cons of spatial extent mapping
        • Data analysis and interpretation
        • Spatial extent mapping methods
      • Photo points
        • Photo point guidelines
    • Habitat protection
      • Legal protection
        • Nga Whenua Rahui
        • QEII covenants
        • DOC Covenants
      • Animal pest control
      • Weed control
      • Fencing
    • Funding
    • Botanic gardens
  • NZPCN
    • Members
    • Council members
      • Council 2009
      • Council 2010
      • Council 2011
      • Council 2012
      • Council 2013
      • NZPCN council member profiles
      • Council 2003
      • Council 2004
      • Council 2005
      • Council 2006
      • Council 2007
      • Council 2008
      • Council 2014
      • Council 2015
      • Council 2016
      • Council 2017
      • Council 2018
      • Council 2019
      • Council 2020
      • Council 2021
      • Council 2022
      • Council 2023
    • Awards
      • NZPCN Awards
        • 2018
        • 2016
        • 2015
        • 2014
        • 2013
        • 2012
        • 2011
        • 2010
        • 2009
        • 2008
        • 2007
        • 2006
        • 2005
        • 2017
        • 2019
        • 2022
    • David Given Scholarship
      • David Given Scholarship Recipients
    • Events
      • Conference 2019
      • Conference 2017
      • Conference 2015
        • Speakers
        • Workshops
        • Field trips
        • Charity auction
      • Conference 2013
        • Speakers
        • Timetable
      • Conference 2022
        • 2022 conference field trips
        • 2022 conference workshops
        • Code of conduct
        • 2022 conference sponsors
        • COVID-19 information
        • Abstract and poster submission
        • 2022 Conference venue and accommodation
        • 2022 conference postponement
        • Conference Workshop: Restoration Pathways
        • Conference programme summary
      • 2023 Restoration Pathways Workshop
      • 2023 AGM
      • Conference 2024
    • Shop
    • Favourite Plant
    • Join
    • News
    • Donate
    • Trilepidea newsletter
    • Why join NZPCN?
  • Contact us
  • Help
    • FAQ
      • The Network
      • Network website
      • New Zealand plants
      • The law
      • Your discoveries
      • Joining the Network
    • Query
    • Glossary