Description: Succulent prostrate to erect annual [or perennial] herbs. Flowering stems usually leafy towards the base, to 60 cm long.
Leaves basal and on the lower part of the flowering stems in most species, decreasing in size along the flowering stems, alternate [or opposite], mostly linear to lanceolate, or oblanceolate to obovate, acute to obtuse, succulent, entire, glabrous, usually sessile.
Inflorescences few- to many-flowered cymes; pedicels erect, spreading or reflexed in fruit; bracts alternate or opposite, usually scarious. Sepals commonly persistent. Petals 4–7, often 5, free, white, pink or purple. Stamens 3–numerous. Ovary superior, ovoid to globose, ovules 1–numerous; stigmas 3 or 4, mostly sessile on the ovary, rarely on a short style.
Capsule dehiscing through 3 or 4 valves or rarely through a pore at the apex, light brown or rarely black; seeds 1–numerous, shiny [or dull], smooth or variously patterned.
Distribution and occurrence: World: c. 120 species, Australia, North & South America. Australia: c. 40 species, all States.
Text by J. G. West
Taxon concept:
| | Key to the species | |
| KEY BASED ON FLORAL, FRUITING AND VEGETATIVE FEATURES | |
| 1 | Capsules 4-valved; stigmas 4 | 2 |
| Capsules 3-valved or with a terminal pore; stigmas 3 | 3 |
| 2 | Prostrate to decumbent herb with stems to 40 cm long; leaves basal and on flowering stems; stamens 6–11; seeds with 6–10 concentric ribs | Calandrinia ptychosperma |
| Prostrate herb with stems to 5 cm long; leaves all basal; stamens 4–6; seeds with colliculate to papillate testa
Back to 1 | Calandrinia sp. Nerriga (I.R.H.Telford 8677) |
| 3 | Capsules obpyriform, opening by a terminal pore; seeds 2, superposed; petals to 1.5 mm long | Calandrinia disperma |
| Capsules ovoid or globose, opening by valves; seeds >10, not superposed; petals >1.5 mm long
Back to 2 | 4 |
| 4 | Basal leaves usually >5 cm long; stamens >20; petals usually >5 mm wide | 5 |
| Basal leaves usually <5 cm long; stamens <20; petals usually <5 mm wide
Back to 3 | 6 |
| 5 | Stigmas sessile on the ovary; capsules 5–6 mm long; seeds lenticular, smooth, c. 0.5 mm diameter | Calandrinia remota |
| Stigmas on a style 2–3 mm long; capsules 7–9 mm long; seeds reniform, colliculate, >1 mm long
Back to 2 | Calandrinia balonensis |
| 6 | Capsules black, subglobose, trigonous, 1.5–2.2 mm long; sepals not persistent | Calandrinia granulifera |
| Capsules light brown, ovoid or globose but not trigonous, usually >2 mm long; sepals persistent
Back to 5 | 7 |
| 7 | Leaves all basal, petiolate; capsules globose, circumsciss at the base, pericarp membranous | Calandrinia pumila |
| Leaves basal and on flowering stems, usually sessile; capsules ovoid, not circumsciss, pericarp crustaceous
Back to 6 | 8 |
| 8 | Valves of capsules not persistent; seeds papillate-punctate; stamens 4–6 | Calandrinia pickeringii |
| Valves of capsules persistent; seeds smooth, colliculate or papillate, not punctate; stamens usually >6
Back to 5 | 9 |
| 9 | Petals 7–10 mm long; capsules 7–9 mm long, with acuminate, recurved valves; seeds flattened at the margins; leaves subsessile or petiolate | Calandrinia ciliata |
| Petals to 7 mm long; capsules to 7.5 mm long, with obtuse, incurved or involute valves; seeds not flattened at margins; leaves sessile
Back to 8 | 10 |
| 10 | Seeds 10–20, lenticular, smooth to faintly colliculate; petals 2–3 mm long | Calandrinia calyptrata |
| Seeds >20, reniform, colliculate to papillate; petals usually longer than 3 mm
Back to 9 | 11 |
| 11 | Inflorescences twining; fruiting pedicels curved upwards; capsules 5.5–7.5 mm long; seeds without a coppery lustre | Calandrinia volubilis |
| Inflorescences straight (not twining); fruiting pedicels straight, reflexed; capsule 3–5 mm long; seeds with a coppery lustre
Back to 9 | Calandrinia eremaea |
| KEY TO SPECIES BASED ON SEED AND CAPSULE CHARACTERS | |
| 1 | Seeds 2, superposed, dark red-brown to black, colliculate to papillate near the hilum, upper seed ovoid, 1.5–1.8 mm long, 0.7–0.8 mm diameter, lower seed subrhomboidal, 1.4–1.5 mm long, 1–1.2 mm diameter | Calandrinia disperma |
| Seeds ≥10, usually >20, not superposed | 2 |
| 2 | Seeds lenticular | 3 |
| Seeds reniform or obovoid, numerous
Back to 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Seeds black, flattened towards the margin, 1.4–1.7 mm diameter, colliculate, numerous | Calandrinia ciliata |
| Seeds red-brown to dark brown, not flattened towards the margin, 0.5–0.7 mm diameter, smooth to faintly colliculate
Back to 2 | 4 |
| 4 | Seeds 10–20, smooth to faintly colliculate; capsules 2–3.6 mm long | Calandrinia calyptrata |
| Seeds numerous, smooth; capsules 5–6 mm long
Back to 3 | Calandrinia remota |
| 5 | Seeds reniform | 6 |
| Seeds obovoid
Back to 2 | 8 |
| 6 | Seeds 1–1.3 mm long, c. 0.8 mm wide, colliculate, black or dark red-black | Calandrinia balonensis |
| Seeds to 0.7 mm long, colliculate to papillate or papillate, red-brown, dark brown, grey or black, sometimes with a coppery lustre
Back to 5 | 7 |
| 7 | Seeds colliculate to papillate, 0.4–0.7 mm wide, red-brown, grey or rarely black, with a coppery lustre; fruiting pedicels straight, reflexed | Calandrinia eremaea |
| Seeds papillate all over, c. 0.6 mm long, 0.6 mm wide, dark brown to black, without coppery lustre; fruiting pedicels curved upwards
Back to 6 | Calandrinia volubilis |
| 8 | Seeds with 6–10 concentric ribs, 0.5–0.7 mm long, 0.4–0.6 mm diameter, black or rarely dark red-brown | Calandrinia ptychosperma |
| Seeds colliculate to papillate-punctate, never ribbed, dark brown or red-brown to black
Back to 5 | 9 |
| 9 | Seeds smooth to colliculate, light red-brown; capsules globose or trigonous | 10 |
| Seeds colliculate to papillate or papillate-punctate, dark red-brown to black; capsules ovoid
Back to 8 | 11 |
| 10 | Seeds colliculate, c. 0.5 mm long, 0.4 mm diameter, capsules black, dehiscing through short valves at the apex; sepals not persistent | Calandrinia granulifera |
| Seeds smooth to colliculate, 0.4–0.5 mm long, 0.3 mm diameter; capsules light brown, 2.6–3.5 mm long, circumsciss at base; sepals persistent
Back to 9 | Calandrinia pumila |
| 11 | Seeds colliculate to papillate, c. 0.5 mm long, 0.5 mm diameter; capsules >4 mm long, 4-valved, valves persistent | Calandrinia sp. Nerriga (I.R.H.Telford 8677) |
| Seeds papillate-punctate, c. 0.7 mm diameter; capsules <3 mm long, 3-valved, valves not persistent
Back to 9 | Calandrinia pickeringii |
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