Abstract
Santalum lanceolatum, the northern sandalwood or plumbush, was very heavily harvested in Victoria and New South Wales in the late 1800s. Clearing, fire and grazing have also contributed to the species' decline. Only seven populations remain in Victoria, where we studied the five southernmost populations of the species. Since exclusion of grazing animals, the remnant populations have been reproducing asexually by root suckers. However, we observed little or no fruit production in the populations, and allozyme and RAPD analyses suggested that sexual reproduction had not been contributing to recruitment. Each population appeared to exist as a unique single clone composed of numerous ramets of a single genet. Therefore, conservation of the species in Victoria may require protection of all remnant populations, and possibly the establishment of new populations.