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Salt-sensitive Wetland Plants List - Loddon Murray Region

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Waterlogging-tolerant Plants | Ephemeral Annuals | Perennial Fringe-dwellers

The following lists of plants provide examples of normally salt-sensitive species that may have an association with suspected or obvious saline sites. They have been divided into Waterlogging-tolerant Plants, Ephemeral Annuals and Perennial Fringe-dwellers. Some of these species may tolerate slightly saline conditions or brackish waters under some circumstances but generally appear to suffer in growth and persistence if exposed to salt for any extended period of time.

Waterlogging-tolerant Plants
The presence of prolonged waterlogging often suggests associated salinity but many sites can be inundated (i.e. covered) by freshwater only, even through periodic wetting and drying cycles, without any increase in salt concentration. It should be noted that many waterlogging-tolerant plants that grow in freshwater are also tolerant of salinity but such species are listed under Soil-salinity Tolerant Plants, rather than here. Examples include Common Reed (Phragmites australis) and Annual Beard-grass (Polypogon monspeliensis). The species provided in this list are normally indicators of fresh or near-fresh water conditions but only represent some of the many plants that could be cited. Although the list includes emergent aquatic species (i.e. species with roots growing in water but tops emerging above), floating and submerged aquatics are not included. Many emergent aquatics grow around the edges of permanent water-bodies or in shallow water and are adapted to periods of surface drying. Submerged or floating aquatics generally require permanent inundation, although their seed may survive long periods of drought. Waterlogging-tolerant plants vary in the length of waterlogging or inundation they can tolerate and examples across this range are provided.they can tolerate and examples across this range are provided.

* indicates introduced and exotic species, (*) indicates a mixture of exotic and native species

Grasses and Rush-like Plants
Common Swamp Wallaby-grassAmphibromus nervosus
(*) Flat-sedgesCyperus spp.
*PaspalumPaspalum dilatatum
Perennial Rye-grassLolium perenne
(*)RushesJuncus spp.
SedgesCarex spp.
Spike-rushesEleocharis spp.
Water CouchPaspalum distichum
Warrego Summer-grassPaspalidium jubiflorum

Forbs
Common NardooMarsilea drummondii
*
DocksRumex spp.
Lesser JoyweedAlternanthera denticulata
*
Ribwort Plantago lanceolata
Star FruitDamasonium minus

Shrubs and Trees
*WillowsSalix spp.

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Ephemeral Annuals
Many saline sites often support a range of short-lived annuals that essentially germinate, grow, flower and set seed during the wetter phases of a season and before summer evaporation increases salinity concentrations to fatal levels for these normally salt-sensitive species. It is common to find these same species growing in non-saline and non-waterlogged sites as well; many in quite dry conditions. Some annual species may be waterlogging tolerant but many survive by growing on the higher sections of a waterlogged and saline site. Such micro-relief sites include mounds created through pugging or land yabby activity or pedestals left behind after scouring has eroded non-vegetated sections. The occurrence of these species on a wet or moist site during spring may lead an observer to conclude that the site is not saline, whereas closer examination may reveal a number of salt indicator species as well.

* indicates introduced and exotic species, (*) indicates a mixture of exotic and native species

Grasses and Rush-like Plants
Annual Cat's-tailRostraria cristata
Annual PoaPoa annua
*
AvelliniaAvellinia michelii
*
Great BromeBromus diandrus
False Hair-grassPentaschistis airoides
*
Lesser Canary-grassPhalaris minor
*
Paradoxical Canary-grassPhalaris paradoxa
*
Red BromeBromus rubens
*
Silver grassesVulpia spp.
*
Soft BromeBromus hordeaceus
*
Wild OatsAvena fatua

Forbs
*
CapeweedArctotheca calendula
*
Clustered CloverTribolium glomeratum
*
Hare’s-foot Clover Trifolium arvense
Jersey CudweedPseudognaphalium luteoalbum
*
Little MedicMedicago minima
*
PimpernelAnagallis arvensis
*
Tall FleabaneConyza bonariensis
*
White CloverTrifolium repens

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Perennial Fringe-dwellers
A number of perennial species grow on the fringes of salt-lakes, saline swamps or saltmarshes but not within the saline soil or saline watertable zone itself. Like the ephemeral annuals, they appear to survive by being most active when lake or swamp water levels are highest, soil profile conditions are wettest but salinity levels are lowest. Unlike some more salt-tolerant species such as Lesser Sea-spurrey (Spergularia marina), these species do not follow water levels and increased salinity towards the centres of the water-bodies as water levels retreat over summer, and hence they maintain their fringe-dwelling character. Of course, across the range of species found near saline environments, a range of salt-tolerance will also be found, with a consequence that a series of different vegetation zones can often be found radiating out from the salt body. Surprisingly, some fringe-dwellers are only found around saline swamps or lakes and do not grow near fresh water-bodies. In freshwater environments, they may not be able to compete with the more vigorous species normally found there, while at the fringe of saline environments, they seem to occupy a position that likely tolerates seasonal, short-term flushes of low-moderate salinity that freshwater species cannot tolerate.

* indicates introduced and exotic species, (*) indicates a mixture of exotic and native species

Grasses and Rush-like Plants
Mallee Love-grassEragrostis dielsii
*
PhalarisPhalaris aquatica

Forbs
Australian HollyhockMalva preissiana
Austral Stork's-billPelargonium australe
Common WoodruffAsperula conferta
New Holland DaisyVittadinia spp.
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