The Savage Garden, Revised by Peter D'Amato

Author:Peter D'Amato [D'Amato, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-60774-411-5
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Published: 2013-07-01T16:00:00+00:00

Drosera ordensis, a discovery of Allen Lowrie in the desolate Kununurra area of northern Australia. (photo credit 5.39)

Drosera paradoxa

This unusual form is very similar in appearance to Drosera petiolaris except the leaves are hairy, like those of Drosera lanata. In the sun the plants grow in pincushionlike rosettes on the ground. When shaded by bushes, they can grow to a foot (0.3 m) tall, leaning among other plants.

Pygmy Sundews

Pygmy sundews, almost all of which originate in southwestern Western Australia, are a fascinating and complex group of plants. Most of these plants are true miniatures, rarely larger than a penny, although a few can be somewhat larger in size. All are beautiful, diminutive jewels, best seen in colonies with the aid of magnifying glasses. There are probably around forty or so species, including a few hybrids.

The climate of Western Australia is considered warm temperate to subtropical and Mediterranean. This means the summers are very hot and very dry. Winters are cool, with night temperatures in the 30sºF and 40sºF (-2–4ºC) and day temperatures between 50ºF and 65ºF (10–18ºC). Most of the rain falls during the winter months, and it is then that the flora of the region does its most vigorous growing. This is also true of the carnivores from this region of the world. As the hot days of summer approach, most of the plant life goes dormant while desertlike conditions prevail. The soil is predominantly sand.

Pygmy sundews are typically small rosetted plants rarely over an inch (2.5 cm) in diameter. The leaves radiate outward on short petioles with small, tentacle-covered traps that are circular to spoon-shaped. The tentacles can be very long around the edge of the leaf, and move quickly when small prey are trapped. The center of the plant usually has a cone-shaped structure of shiny, dense hairs called stipules. In summer, when pygmies are dormant, the plants fold up to these heat-reflecting tufts of hair.

A most curious aspect of pygmy sundews is their ability to produce gemmae, or brood bodies—an asexual method of reproduction. Each gemma is pinhead size or smaller and may re-semble the scales of a fish or small beads.

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