Geranium potentilloides
L’Hér. ex DC. Soft Crane's-billProstrate to scrambling perennial; stems to c. 100 cm long, sometimes stoloniferous, with sparse to dense, short, soft spreading to recurved or appressed hairs; taproot thickened, much-branched. Leaves orbicular to reniform, 0.5–4.5 cm long, palmatisect with 5–7, trifid, sometimes further dissected or toothed, primary lobes; ultimate lobes obtuse to acute; upper surface with spreading hairs; stipules ovate to lanceolate, acuminate or sometimes laciniate. Flowers solitary (rarely paired); peduncles 0–3.5 cm long; pedicels 1–3.5 cm long; sepals ovate to oblanceolate, 3.5–5 mm long, subacute, margins occasionally translucent, mucro 0.3–1 mm long; petals spathulate to broad-obovate, 4–8.5 mm long, obtuse to retuse, white to pink; anthers yellow to orange. Fruits 12–20 mm long; mericarps sparsely pubescent to pilose, suture margins not ciliate; seed smooth to rugose with isodiametric or elongate alveolae. Soft Crane’s-bill.
MuM, Wim, GleP, Brid, VVP, VRiv, GipP, OtP, WaP, Gold, CVU, GGr, DunT, NIS, EGL, EGU, WPro, HSF, HNF, OtR, Strz, MonT, HFE, VAlp.
Characterized by single flowers, thickened and branched taproots, and the uniform recurved or appressed indumentum on most or all parts of plant.
Aedo (2017) does not recognise any infraspecific taxa within Geranium potentilloides. Aedo comments that Carolin (1965) distinguished G. potentilloides var. abditum by its seeds, which are blackish with deep elongated alveolae somewhat larger than those of the other two varieties. However, Aedo notes that a broad range of variation in the form of the cells of the seed-coat suggests that this character has little taxonomic value. G. potentilloides var. abditum is here maintained pending a more detailed study of the Australian plants.
Smith, L.P. (1999). Geranium. In: Walsh, N.G.; Entwisle, T.J., Flora of Victoria Vol. 4, Cornaceae to Asteraceae, pp. 219–233. Inkata Press, Melbourne.
Aedo, C. (2017). Revision of Geranium (Geraniaceae) in the western and central Pacific area. Systematic Botany Monographs 102: 1–240.