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  4. Libertia mooreae

Libertia mooreae

in cultivation, ex Takaka Hill, Nelson.<br>Photographer: Mike Thorsen, Date taken: 03/12/2013, 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>
Wairarapa.<br>Photographer: Patrick Enright, 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>
Wairarapa.<br>Photographer: Patrick Enright, 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>
Wairarapa.<br>Photographer: Patrick Enright, 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>
Wairarapa.<br>Photographer: Patrick Enright, 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>
Wairarapa.<br>Photographer: Patrick Enright, 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>
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Common names

Moore’s iris, Moore’s mikoikoi

Biostatus

Native – Endemic taxon

Category

Vascular

Structural class

Herbs - Monocots

Flower colours

Red/Pink, White

Detailed description

Plants consisting of leafy fans, closely bunched on short, much branched rhizomes. Leaves 100–400 × 1–4 mm, green to glaucous, slightly falcate, the two sides similar, although in some accessions they are all concave on the same face; leaf bases red-purple; veins numerous; margins finely scabrid; leaf in transverse section a flattened convex lens shape, two rows of vascular bundles present centrally, marginal vascular bundle present, sclerenchyma present on inside of leaf sheath. Inflorescences long (140–560 mm), carrying flowers above leaves; peduncles two-fifths the length of the inflorescence. Panicle broad, usually openly branched; lower bracts long (20–60 mm), green and lanceolate, upper bracts short and brown, occurring singly; 1–7 flowers per branch. Pedicels slender and delicate, glabrous, 10–35 mm long. Perianth bud often pigmented externally, often 2× as long as ovary at anthesis. Flowers 10–20 mm diameter; tepals all white internally, inner tepals orbicular, sometimes overlapping outer tepals; outer tepals > ½ length of inner tepals but < one-third the area, elliptical, beige or pink, boat-shaped. Staminal filaments very shortly connate; anthers 2–3 mm long, yellow. Ovary dark green, ½ the length of perianth bud; style branches not winged, usually pointing upwards. Capsule small, rarely reaching 5–8 mm long, 3–5 mm diameter, barrel-shaped with ribs, ripening from green to brown or black, partially or occasionally fully dehiscing by short loculicidal openings. Seeds 1.0 × 1.0–1.5 mm, globose to angular, with reticulate-foveolate surface patterning, yellow to yellow-orange.

Similar taxa

Libertia mooreae differs from L. grandiflora, L. ixioides, and L. peregrinans by plant size and leaf structure. It is generally smaller than the other species, and its leaves have equally spaced veins, unlike the other species, which have veins coalescing centrally to form a thickened midrib. Libertia mooreae often also has bluish, concave leaves. It differs from L. grandiflora by its semi-dehiscent, barrel-shaped capsules, purple-red leaf bases, and yellowish seeds; from L. ixioides by its tall inflorescence, orbicular petals, small sepals, and green leaves in summer; and from L. peregrinans and hybrids by its lack of elongate rhizomes. Libertia mooreae differs from L. micrantha in flower shape and rhizome and leaf anatomy.

Distribution

Endemic

Habitat

Coastal to montane. Usually in open, lowland forest remnants, forest margins, on steep slopes, ridge lines, bluffs, cliffs, stream banks, and river terraces.

Current conservation status

The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.

  • Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.

2023 | Not Threatened

Jump to previous conservation statuses

Detailed taxonomy

Family

Iridaceae

Authority

Libertia mooreae Blanchon, B.G.Murray et Braggins

Synonyms

None (first described in 2002)

Endemic taxon

Yes

Endemic genus

No

Endemic family

No

Ecology

Flowering

August – November

Fruiting

December – February

Propagation technique

Easily grown from fresh seed and by the division of established plants. This species is tolerant of a wide range of situations, except permanently water-logged soils, although it does best in semi-shade. An attractive plant that deserves to be more widely cultivated.

Other information

Etymology

libertia: Named after Marie-Anne Libert, (1782-1865) born & died in Malmedy, province of Liège, Belgium; botanist and mycologist

mooreae: Honours Lucy B. Moore (1906-87), former botanist at DSIR Botany Division, who prepared most of the last comprehensive treatment of Hebe (in Allan 1961).

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.

LIBMOO

Chromosome number

2n = 114

Previous conservation statuses

The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.

  • Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.

2017 | Not Threatened

2012 | Not Threatened

2009 | Not Threatened

2004 | Not Threatened

Jump to current conservation status

Referencing and citations

References and further reading

Blanchon, D.J.; Murray, B.G.; Braggins, J.E. 2002: A taxonomic revision of Libertia (Iridaceae) in New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Botany 40: 437-456.

Attribution

Description modified from Blanchon et al. (2002)

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