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Image Credit: Anna Povey – with permission
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Image Credit: Gill Basnett – with permission
Scientific Name: Burchardia umbellata
Common Name: milkmaids
Family Classification (Clade): Monocots
Family: Colchicaceae
Form Description: Tufted herb
Height (m): 0.15 – 0.5
Flowers: White with 6 petals. Flowers grow in umbels.
Fruit: Triangular capsule – becomes red-brown and brittle as it matures. Seed is dark brown and hard when mature.
Municipality
Plant Communities
Habitat Notes
Coastal heaths and swampy areas or under light dry sclerophyll cover sea level to 350m.
Site Tolerance
Dry, Exposed, Moist, Waterlogged, Windy
Soil Tolerance
Fertile, Loam, Nutrient-poor, Poorly-drained, Sandy, Well-drained
Frost Tolerance
Moderate
General Notes
Dies down to a bulb annually.
Propagation Calendar
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Flowering Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec -
Seed Collecting Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec -
Sowing Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec -
Cutting Month
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Propagation Method
Seed Information
Seed Collection
Dry until capsules have opened, lightly thresh to extract seed. Sieve to clean.
Seed Treatment Method
Smoke Smoke treatment improves germination in some species. Smokey products, e.g. smokey vermiculite, can be purchased and applied to the sown seed, or sown seeds can be treated directly with smoke from a source such as a drum with a fire and hose.
Seed Treatment Notes
Seed has a 3-month after-ripening period. Poor seedling growth in conventional potting mixes and may require soil fungi or soil from under parent plant. Temperature may be critical to germination i.e. not over 18°C.
Germination Time
4-8 weeks