Lesser Sand-spurrey

Scientific Name:

Spergularia diandra

Other Common Names:

Small Sand-spurrey, Alkali Sand-spurrey

Status:

Native to the Mediterranean, Asia Minor and the Middle East. Naturalised in all mainland Australian states.

Plant Description:

Spreading annual plant with a slender taproot and slender stems to 15 cm long; often forming mats. Leaves narrow linear, mucronate or shortly awned and not particularly fleshy. Flowers pale to bright rose-pink and generally shorter than the 2.5-3 mm long sepals. Stamens number 2-3. Capsules are equal in length to the sepals and contain very dark brown to black unwinged seeds, 0.4-0.5 mm long, with a metallic or irridescent lustre.

Habitat:

Largely confined to north-west Victoria in damp clayey or sandy, saline or calcareous soils.

Region	Salinity Class	Waterlogging Class
Mallee, Loddon Murray, Wimmera	S1, S2, S3	W2, W3

Comments:

A number of Sea- or Sand-spurrey species occur in Victoria and can be difficult to tell apart. A simplified key to Spergularia species can be accessed here – Key to species

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