July, 1952 
THE SOUTH AUSTRALIAN NATURALIST 
Page fifty-nine 
A NEW RECORD FOR SOUTH AUSTRALIA 
(14th January, 1952) 
By KEN DUNSTONE. 
Several years ago the writer noticed an 
abundant growth of the red dead-nettle in 
a market garden beside Fourth Creek at 
Norton Summit. It appeared to be in 
sufficient numbers to say that it was estab- 
lished there. Its name is Larnium purpu- 
reum, of the family Labiatae, that is, the 
sage and mint family. 
The fact that introduced plants some- 
times turn up in quite unusual places pro- 
vides much food for thought as to how they 
get there. It is possible that many are 
unwittingly taken about by man himself, 
often in the seed which he used for pastures 
and various crops. Many are definitely 
escapes from gardens, and frequently suc- 
ceed better as such. Some are carried about 
by animal agencies, especially birds, par- 
ticularly the berry- and seed-eating types 
and the wading types, these last being very 
obvious examples. In fact, this avian me- 
thod of plant spread furnished a most fas- 
cinating theme of research for Darwin, who 
raised a large number of plants from seeds 
in the mud adhering to the feet of birds. 
The same field of investigation could be 
exploited very profitably in this State by 
someone prepared to go around taking a 
census of the plants growing in and around 
man-made water-holes and water-courses. 
An analysis could then be made of the lists, 
in the endeavour to determine which were 
air-borne, which were taken there by 
animals and birds, and so on. 
It would, of course, be essential to know 
the botanical name of every plant found, 
so that this would act as a compelling urge 
to remember the names of all the plants 
in a given locality. 
This is one systematic way of finding 
new plants. Naturally, it is always best if 
the discovery be a native plant; neverthe- 
less, it is useful to know what is growing in 
our State in the way of introductions. 
ANOTHER NEW PLANT FOR 
SOUTH AUSTRALIA? 
On January 5 of this year, what is be- 
lieved to be a new record for this State was 
discovered in the bed of the River Torrens, 
a little way above Castambul. It is the 
plant called pickerelweed, an introduction 
from North America. Its botanical name 
is Pontederia cordata , and it belongs to die 
family Pontederiaceae, 
The very interesting point about this 
find is that it is in the same family as the 
notorious water-hyacinth ( Eichhornia -), 
which is so well known for its rapid spread 
along the River Murray from the Ramco 
Lagoon, in 1937. It remains to be seen 
whether this new introduction spreads as 
quickly, although this is rather doubtful, 
as the quick growth of the water-hyacinth 
is due largely to its horizontal shoots, or 
stolons, which radiate from it in all direc- 
tions, while the main means of propagation 
of the pickerel-weed is by means of its 
thick underground (or under-river) root 
or rhizome. — K.D. 
THE WALL FLOWER AS AN 
ANTIBIOTIC 
Mentioning that one of the exhibits 
contained in Gerard’s Herball, Sir Howard 
[Florey] pointed out that among the illus- 
trations was the wallflower. “If you take 
any part of the waflflower, its stem, seed 
or leaves, and grind them up, the liquid 
in which they have been drowned is a 
very powerful antibacterial. It is much 
more powerful than carbolic, and was cer- 
tainly used in the Middle Ages and pos- 
sibly earlier, as a poultice to apply to in- 
flamed parts. There is some connection be- 
tween the herbalist and the typ^ of 
pharmacy now being done.” 
Sir Howard Florey, when opening an 
Exhibition illustrating the History of 
Pharmacy at the Wellcome Historical 
Medical Museum, London, on Mav 8 
1951. 7 ' 
(Vide: British Medical Journal, June 9 
1951, p. 1322). 
J.B.C. 
