Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

Hardenbergia violacea

Flowers and leaves. Photographer Don Wood, Jervis Bay National Park, NSW

Flowers and leaves. Photographer Don Wood, Black Mountain, Canberra

Pods and leaves. Australian Plant Image Index, photographer Murray Fagg, Australian National Botanic Gardens, Canberra

Plant. Australian Plant Image Index, photographer Colin Totterdell, unknown place

Common name

False sarsaparilla, Purple coral-pea, Waraburra

Family

Fabaceae

Where found

Variety of habitats, particularly forest and woodland. Widespread.

Notes

Climber or prostrate shrub, stems to 2m long. Stems hairless. Leaves alternating along the stems, 3-11.5 cm long, 10-50 mm wide, more or less leathery, dark green above, paler below, hairless, venation prominently reticulate. Flowers 7-10 mm long, pea shaped, with 5 petals, 2 joined together to form the keel, purple to mauve or pink, occasionally white, the standard petal with a cream to yellowish spot. Flowers in clusters, the upper clusters of 20-30 flowers forming branched clusters. Flowers Winter to Spring.

All native plants on unleased land in the ACT are protected.

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Hardenbergia~violacea (accessed 19 January, 2021)