Nitraria billardierei
Nitraria billardierei
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
Nitraria billardierei is native to arid and semi-arid regions in the werm temperate and subtropical zones of Australia. It is said to have some frost tolerance. Nitraria species generally prefer a light to medium well-drained soil in an open sunny position. Plants are very salt tolerant and usually grow well on saline soils[1]. Established plants are very drought resistant[2]. A dioecious species, with individual plants producing either all male or all female flowers. Therefore both male and female-flowered forms of the plant usually need to be grown if fruit and seed are required[1].
Propagation
Seed - germinates best at 18-22°c. The seed is contained in a woody fruit. Pre-soaking for 24 hours in warm water can improve germination, cracking the woody shell (being careful not to damage the fseed) is also beneficial. Even then the seed can take one to severl months to germinate. The seed germinates much better if it has passed through the digestive system - in particular the fruits were a favourite food for emus and defacated seeds would have a much higher germination rate[1]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Nitraria+billardierei>
Pollinators
Data unavailable
References
- [1]Wild Food Plants of Australia. — Low. T. · Angus and Robertson. · 1989 · ISBN 0-207-14383-8 ↩︎Well presented, clear information and good photographs. An interesting read for the casual reader as well as the enthusiast
- [2]Flora of New South Wales — http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/floraonline.htm ↩︎An on-line resource giving a brief botanical description of all the native plants of New South Wales, their habitat and range, together with diagrams and photographs of the plants.
- [3]VicFlora - Flora of Victoria — https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/ ↩︎An om-line flora for the state of Victoria, Australia.
- [4]The Useful Native Plants of Australia. — Maiden J.H. · Turner & Co.; London. · 1889 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Terse details of the uses of many Australian plants and other species naturalised, or at least growing, in Australia. It can be downloaded from the Internet.