Species

Agrostis muelleriana

Etymology

Agrostis: Greek name for a kind of grass
muelleriana: Named after Baron Ferdinand von Mueller, 19th century German/Australian botanist and founder of the National Herbarium of Victoria

Common Name(s)

None known

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Not Threatened

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - Not Threatened
2004 - Not Threatened

Authority

Agrostis muelleriana Vickery

Family

Poaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

AGRMUE

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.

Structural Class

Grasses

Synonyms

Agrostis canina var. beta Hook.f.; A. gelida F.Muell., A. canina var. beta gelida (F.Muell.) Buchanan, A. muelleri Benth.

Distribution

Indigenous. North Island, uncommon, Central mountains only. South Island, throughout the mountains. Indigenous to Australia (New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania)

Habitat

Montane to alpine in scree, rocky ground, fell field and in seepages

Similar Taxa

Agrostis subulata Hook.f. which is confined to the Antipodes and Campbell Islands and has light green or occasionally purple-tinged, minutely pubescent-scabrid glumes.

Propagation Technique

Easy from fresh seed. Grows very well in small pots and within a rockery but requires a shaded spot at low altitudes and dislikes humidity. Will not flower unless subjected to cold treatment

Threats

Not Threatened

Chromosome No.

2n = 42

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

Life Cycle and Dispersal

Florets are dispersed by wind and water (Thorsen et al., 2009).

Where To Buy

Not commercially available

References and further reading

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 2009 Vol. 11 No. 4 pp. 285-309

This page last updated on 10 May 2014