{{short description|Species of plant in Asparagaceae family}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}} {{Speciesbox | image = Lomandra multiflora (5112527998).jpg | image_caption = | genus = Lomandra | species = multiflora | authority = (R.Br.) Britten | synonyms = }}
'''''Lomandra multiflora''''', also commonly known as many-flowered mat rush, mat rush and many flowered mat-lily,<ref name=":2" /> is a perennial, rhizomatous herb found in Australia and Papua New Guinea.<ref>{{cite web |title=''Lomandra multiflora''|work=PlantNet New South Wales Flora Online; author G. J. Harden|url=http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Lomandra~multiflora|accessdate=2017-03-28}}</ref> The mat rush is distributed widely in the region and common within its preferred growing conditions.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":7" /> Its conservation status is considered not to be of concern and risk.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=Communications|first=c=AU; o=The State of Queensland; ou=Department of Environment and Science; ou=Corporate|date=2014-10-20|title=Species profile {{!}} Environment, land and water|url=https://apps.des.qld.gov.au/species-search/details/?id=16777|access-date=2021-06-02|website=apps.des.qld.gov.au|language=en-AU}}</ref>
There are two subspecies of ''Lomandra multiflora'', known as ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies dura'' and ''subspecies multiflora''.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":5" /> ''Lomandra multiflora'' is a small grass-like plant with long flat yellowish green leaves that are typically 30–50 cm long.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":7" /> A distinct feature about ''Lomandra multiflora'' is that they are a dioecious plant.<ref name=":1" /> The flower of the plant is a creamy yellow colour.<ref name=":1" /> The male flowers are smaller than the female flowers and grow on a branched stem, unlike the female flowers.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":8" />
''Lomandra multiflora'' grows chiefly in woodland and open forest on a variety of soils.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":6" /> The plant is fire-retardant and can withstand a range of climates, making it ideal to grow in gardens.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":9" /> ''Lomandra multiflora'' is historically used for basket making and other forms of weaving.<ref name=":2" /> The plant is a food for native Australian butterflies, caterpillars, and moths.<ref name=":10" /><ref name=":6" /> The seed of the plant is also a source of food for birds, skinks, and lizards.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":6" />
== Description == ''Lomandra multiflora'', commonly known as many-flowered mat-rush, mat rush or many-flowered mat-lily is a tufted perennial, rhizomatous herb native to Australia.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Harden|first=G. J|title=Lomandra multiflora|url=https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgibin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Lomandra~multiflora|website=PlanetNet New South Wales Flora Online}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal|last1=Benson|first1=Doug|last2=McDougall|first2=Lyn|date=1993|title=Ecology of Sydney Plant Species|journal=Sydney: National Herbarium of New South Wales, Royal Botanic Gardens|location=Sydney}}</ref> ''Lomandra multiflora'' is part of the ''Lomandra'' genus with around 50 species, all of which are native to Australia and generally share common characteristics. There are two subspecies, ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies dura'', also known as stiff iron grass, and ''subspecies multiflora''.<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal|last1=Wang|first1=Jian|last2=Bean|first2=A.R.|date=2017|title=Lomandra decomposita (R.Br.) Jian Wang ter & A.R.Bean (Laxmanniaceae), a new species for Queensland|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26612111|journal=Austrobaileya|volume=10|issue=1|pages=59–63|doi=10.5962/p.299886 |jstor=26612111|s2cid=260259682 |issn=0155-4131|doi-access=free}}</ref>
''Lomandra multiflora'' is a small grass-like tussocky plant with long flat rigid yellowish green leaves that are typically 30 to 50 cm long but can grow from a range of 25cm to 90 cm long.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Wrigley|first=John|date=2013|title=Lomandra multiflora|url=http://anpsa.org.au/l-mul.html|access-date=2021-05-15|website=anpsa.org.au}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":7">{{Cite news|last=Bedingfield|first=Michael|date=2007|title=Many-flowered Mat-rush - Lomandra multiflora|work=News of Friends of Grasslands|url=http://www.fog.org.au/Newsletters/2007-11newsletter.htm#Many-flowered_mat-rush_%E2%80%93_Lomandra_multiflora}}</ref> The flat smooth leaves grow vertically and are rounded at the apex, often slightly concave or convex, around 2.5 to 4 cm wide. The margins of the leaf are brown, dry and membranous in texture which is slightly rough to the touch.<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal|last=Stevens|first=P.F|date=1978|title=Generic Limits in the Xeroteae (Lilacae Sensu Lato)|journal=Journal of the Arnold Arboretum|volume=59|issue=2|pages=129–158|doi=10.5962/p.185873 |s2cid=91131173 |jstor=|doi-access=free}}</ref>
The subspecies ''multiflora'' has stiff narrow leaves that grow 25–90 cm long, while subspecies dura has strap like leaves about 40cm tall.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=About the Lomandra multiflora|url=https://www.greeningaustralia.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/FACT-SHEET_Lomandra_multiflora.pdf#:~:text=Lomandra%20multiflora%20occurs%20in%20Qld,6%2C%2011%2C%2012%5D.&text=Plants%20are%20dioecious%2C%20ie.,on%20separate%20plants%20%5B10%5D|website=Greening Australia}}</ref> ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies dura'' also differs from subspecies ''multiflora'' in the flowers being more hidden in the hard bracts of the plant.<ref name=":1" />
They are a diecious plant, meaning the male and female flowers are carried on separate plants, which is a distinct feature of the plant.<ref name=":1" /> During spring, the flowers show a creamy yellow colour which are arranged in clusters around the base of the leaves.<ref name=":1" /> The flowers have 6 petals, the inner petals are usually yellow and the outer petals reddish brown. The flowers grow in dense clusters on branch or unbranched spikes often 25–75 cm with spiky white bracts.<ref name=":2" /> The male stalked and bell-shaped flowers are smaller than the female stalkless flowers. The male flowers grow on a branched stem whereas the female occur on unbranched.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":8">{{Cite web|title=Lomandra multiflora subsp. multiflora|url=https://apps.lucidcentral.org/plants_se_nsw/text/entities/lomandra_multiflora_subsp._multiflora.htm|access-date=2021-05-17|website=apps.lucidcentral.org}}</ref> thumb|''Lomandra mutliflora'' male flowers ''Lomandra multiflora’s'' staminate inflorescence, which is the closely grouped arrangement of the male flowers, is around 50–60 cm tall with whorled branches between 2 and 5.5 cm. The flowers are a greenish yellow colour with 6 tepals, the 3 outer tepal are around 1 mm long and 0.7–0.8 mm wide, the 3 inner tepals are approximately 0.8 mm long and 0.5 mm wide and thicker than the outer tepals. The pistillate inflorescence, which is the female flower, is unbranched and around 28–30 cm long. The clusters of flowers in whorls of up to 6 is measured to be up to 7.5mm long. The 3 outer tepals are around 3.1mm long and 2.9mm wide, the inner 3 tepals are 2.5 mm long and 1.5 mm wide.<ref name=":4" />
The fruit of ''Lomandra multiflora'' is a loculicidal capsule. At maturity, the capsule generally contains a single seed that is asymmetrical, around 6–6.5mm long, 3.3–4mm across and 5mm deep. When the seed is dry, it is a grayish brown colour with distant transverse wrinkles.<ref name=":4" /> thumb|''Lomandra multiflora'' female flowers ''Lomandra multiflora'' share very similar features with other species in the ''Lomandra'' genus, including ''Lomandra patens'' and ''Lomandra ramosissima.'' They are all robust plants forming tussocks with rounded to obtuse leaves without teeth and male flowers that from clusters that branch in whorls. However, ''Lomandra Ramosissima'' can be differentiated from ''Lomandra multiflora'' by the more branched female inflorescence and much shorter male flowers.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Wang|first=Jian|date=2018|title=Lomandra ramosissima Jian Wang ter (Laxmanniaceae), a new species from southern central Queensland|journal=Austrobaileya|volume=10|issue=2|pages=266–272|doi=10.5962/p.299908 |s2cid=260265101|jstor=|doi-access=free}}</ref>
== Taxonomy ==
=== Taxonomic history === The name for ''Lomandra multiflora'' was formally published in Britten, J. in Banks, J. & Solander, D.C (1905), Illustrations of Australian plants collected in 1770 during Captain Cooks voyage round the world 3.<ref name=":11">{{Cite web|last=Australia|first=Atlas of Living|title=Species: Lomandra multiflora|url=https://bie.ala.org.au/species/https://id.biodiversity.org.au/node/apni/2889372|access-date=2021-05-31|website=bie.ala.org.au|language=en-AU}}</ref> The obsolete or synonym name for ''Lomandra multiflora'' is ''Xerotes mutliflora'' and ''Xerotes multiflora'' var. ''typicum'' Domin, which was published in Brown, R. (1810), ''Prodromus florae Novae Hollandiae et insulae Van-Diemen, exhibens characters plantarum quas annis'' 1802-1805. The scientific name was then reallocated to Lomandra multiflora (R.Br.) Britten by taxonomy builder.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mindat.org|url=https://www.mindat.org/taxon-2770961.html|access-date=2021-05-29|website=www.mindat.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Lomandra multiflora (R.Br.) Britten|url=https://www.gbif.org/species/171881860|access-date=2021-05-29|website=www.gbif.org|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":11" />
=== Modern classification === The binomial classification of the plant is ''Lomandra multiflora''. There are two subspecies, ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies dura'' and ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies multiflora''.<ref name=":2" /> The common names of ''Lomandra multiflora'' include many-flowered mat-rush, mat rush or many-flowered mat-lily.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0" /> The common name for ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies dura'' is stiff iron-grass.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web|title=Perennial tussock – Lomandra multiflora ssp dura – Gawler Environment Centre|url=https://www.gawlerenvironmentcentre.org.au/product/lomandra-multiflora-ssp-dura/|access-date=2021-05-31|language=en-AU}}</ref> ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies multiflora'' is also commonly known as many-flowered mat-rush and many-flowered mat-lily.<ref name=":6" />
===Etymology=== The genus name ''Lomandra'' is derived from the Greek words ''loma'' meaning edge or margin and ''andros'' meaning male, which is a reference to a circular margin on the anthers, which is the male part of the plant. The specific name ''multiflora'' comes from the Latin word ''multi'' meaning many, and ''flora'' meaning flower which refers to the flowering nature of the plant.<ref name=":1" />
== Distribution and habitat == ''Lomandra multiflora'' is found in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Northern Territory of Australia and also in Papua New Guinea.<ref name=":1" /> ''Lomandra multiflora'' has two subspecies: ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies multiflora'' and ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies dura''. Subspecies ''multiflora'' can be found naturally in Southern Papua New Guinea, Western Melbourne, and the North Eastern tip of Northern Territory. Subspecies ''dura'' can only be found in Southern Australia, specifically in the Southern Flinders, Mt. Lofty Ranges, Yorke and Fleurieu Peninsulas.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Lomandras|url=https://www.ozbreed.com.au/lomandras/|access-date=2021-05-15|website=Ozbreed Plants|language=en-AU}}</ref><ref name=":1" />
''Lomandra multiflora'' grows chiefly in woodland and open forest on a variety of soils, widespread in mainly the drier areas of the regions.<ref name=":6">{{Cite book|last=Stelling|first=Fleur|title=South West Slopes Revegetation Guide (south of the Murrumbidgee River)|year=1998|location=New South Wales}}</ref><ref name=":3" /> The mat-rush grows on the substrates: clay soils on shale, basalt, metamorphics and occasionally on sandstone, low to medium nutrients and well drained.<ref name=":3" />
== Ecology == ''Lomandra multiflora’s'' optimal conditions for cultivation includes well drained soils grown in a range of climates, full sun, or semi-shade.<ref name=":1" /> The mat-rush is a fire-retardant plant as well as facultative and obligate resprouters, meaning it relies on resprouting to regenerate after fire.<ref name=":10" />
Propagation of ''Lomandra multiflora'' can be easily done through the seed or also by division of clumps. Seeds take around 8–10 weeks to germinate without pre-treatment.<ref name=":2" />
The seed dispersal of ''Lomandra multiflora'' can be done through ant adapted elaisome.<ref name=":10" />
The seed of the plant is a source of food for seed-eating birds, skinks, and lizards.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":3" />
''Lomandra multiflora'' is a food for native Australian butterflies, including ''Trapezites eliena'' and ''Trapezites petalia'', caterpillars, and moths.<ref name=":10">{{Cite book|last=Hunter|first=John|title=Vegetation and flora of the Formosa addition to Mt Kaputar National Park|year=2015}}</ref><ref name=":6" /> ''Lomandra multiflora subspecies dura'' is a caterpillar food plant; the seeds are also a food source for lizards.<ref name=":12" /> The plant attracts native bees.<ref name=":12" />
The mat-rush is suspected of poisoning sheep.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hunter|first=John|title=Vegetation and flora of Booroolong Nature Reserve|year=2015}}</ref>
== Uses == Historically, Indigenous people used the long leaves of ''Lomandra multiflora'' for basket making and other forms of weaving, as well as the plant’s nectar as a food.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web|title=Many-flowered mat-rush – Wagga Flora|url=https://waggaflora.com/many-flowered-mat-rush/|access-date=2021-05-15|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2" />
''Lomandra multiflora'' is a fire-retardant plant, meaning it does not catch on fire easily and resprouts from the base if burnt. It can also be used for stabilising banks. The plant can be useful and ideal as a foreground plant in a bush garden, cottage gardens and rockeries as it can withstand a range of different conditions, from frost to drought and brief swampy periods.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":9">{{Cite web|title=Lomandra multiflora ssp. multiflora|url=https://www.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/PlantDirectory/Lilies-Irises/Lomandra-multiflora-ssp.-multiflora|website=Yarra Ranges}}</ref>
=== Propagation and cultivation === ''Lomandra multiflora'' are easily propagated through stem tip cuttings.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Lomandra Multiflora Plant {{!}} Care – Tips – Information – Media|url=https://9plant.com//lomandra-multiflora|access-date=2021-06-01|website=9plant.com}}</ref> The fruit of the plant is a capsule that turns golden brown when ripe.<ref name=":2" /> The ripeness of the seed can be determined when it becomes firm and hard.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":14">{{Cite web|title=Raising Lomandra|url=https://www.richmondlandcare.org/uploads/2/4/2/0/24203043/factsheet_raisinglomandra_final.pdf|website=Richmond Land Care}}</ref> To collect the seeds, cut the stem and place in a large paper bag in a warm place. The capsule or fruit, will open and release the seed.<ref name=":14" /><ref name=":2" /> Alternatively, ''Lomandra multiflora'' can also be propagated by dividing existing clumps, known as root ball division.<ref name=":13" /><ref name=":14" />
== References == <references /> {{Taxonbar|from=Q15522537}}
multiflora Category:Asparagales of Australia Category:Flora of New South Wales Category:Flora of the Northern Territory Category:Flora of Queensland Category:Flora of South Australia Category:Flora of Victoria (state)