Dianella caerulea Sims, Liliaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  no

Threat only at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Evaluate, score: 5 (Go to the risk assessment)

Common name(s): [more details]

English: blue flax-lily, cerulean flaxlily

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Plant tufted and solitary or gregarious, or mat-forming.  Roots fibrous.  Stems to 2 m long, touching or up to .05 m apart.  Leaves 10-75 cm long; sheath conduplicate, moderately to ± completely occluded distally; lamina 0.3-2.5 cm wide, flat, recurving to revolute in T.S. when dry, cucullate, obtuse.  Inflorescence exceeding foliage; cymules open to contracted, 3-25-flowered; pedicels usually less than 1 cm long, sharply ridged to winged.  Perianth segments ovate to narrowly elliptic.  Sepals 7-11.5 mm long, 5-7-nerved.  Petals 6.3-10.5 mm long, 3-5-nerved.  Filament swelling 1-3 mm long, yellow; anthers 2.8-4.7 mm long, pale yellow-brown.  Ovules 6-12 per locule.  Berry 7-12 mm long.  Seed 2.9-3.7 mm long; testa smooth but microscopically areolate-alveolate, to colliculate, black, shiny." Numerous varieties (George, 1987; pp. 209-214).

Habitat/ecology:  In Australia, "ocurs in a variety of habitats from heaths to open eucalypt forest" (George, 1987; pp. 209-214).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  "Common in eastern Australia from Torres Strait islands to Tasmania. In mainland Australia rarely occurs west of the Great Dividing Range. Also in New Guinea" (George, 1987; pp. 209-214).

Presence:

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2007)

Additional information:  Additional online information about Dianella caerulea is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Taxonomic information about Dianella caerulea may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

George, A. S., ed. 1987. Flora of Australia. Vol. 45, Hydatellaceae to Liliaceae. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra. .

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2007. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2005. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.