In Flower This Week A weekly news-sheet prepared by a Gardens volunteer  Numbers in brackets [ ] refer to garden bed 'Sections'.

Summer heat, cooling breezes and many a flower along the Main Path, so come and look. This walk starts at the far end of the Café building, where Melaleuca fulgens [Section 10] has cherry red bottlebrush-like floral spikes on a medium size erect shrub. Opposite, Callistemon subulatus [Section 12] also has red bottlebrushes. Yet small, Geraldton Wax, Chamelaucium uncinatum ‘Purple Pride’ [Section 12] has rich red open flowers under overhanging branches of Leptospermum brevipes [Section 12], its branches laden with small white open flowers. At the next corner, Melaleuca spathulata [Section 9] is dense and erect and profusely covered with small globular mauve fluffy flowers.

Grass trees, Xanthorrhoea glauca subsp. glauca [Section 8] are, as usual, fascinating. With flowing green skirts, one plant exhibits its white flowers, dense along a tall upright stem, another has flowers just maturing and a third has a spike green with buds. At the far end of the garden, equally fascinating, is Gymea Lily, Doryanthes excelsa [Section 8] with large clusters of red flowers on long, upright, bare stems surrounded by dense, sword like leaves. Nearby, kangaroo paws included the deep red Anigozanthos ‘Bush Ranger’ [Section 8].

In the area of grevilleas, Grevillea wilsonii [Section 27,26] is a low shrub with fine, sharp divided leaves and showy erect scarlet flowers, mostly in clusters. Grevillea johnsonii x wilsonii [Section 24] is tall with long segmented leaves and lovely waxy red flowers. Kennedia macrophylla [Section 112] is a twining mass of soft green vine, decorated with large burnt red pea flowers.

Seen along the path curving through the Sydney Region Gully, Jacksonia scoparia [Section 191] is vivid with an abundance of bright yellow pea flowers on an upright shrub. Flannel Flowers, Actinotus helianthi ‘Federation Star’ [Section 191], with large white velvet-like flowers amid velvety green-grey foliage, grow here and there. Cassinia denticulata [Section 191] is laden with flower heads, dense with minute cream flowers. Scaevola ramosissima var. ramosissima [Section 191] is a ground hugging plant with stems bearing large mauve fan-flowers. Hibbertia diffusa [Section 191] is also ground hugging, dense with bright yellow flowers. Boronia microphylla [Section 191] continues to be densely covered with pink buds maturing to paler small flowers.

On your way back, wander through the restful Eucalypt Lawn to the Rock Garden, passing by Hakea trineura [Section 20] laden with long pendent yellow and burnt red flowers ... really attractive. The Rock Garden abounds with interesting plants in flower. In front of the waterfall see the Royal Bluebell, Canberra’s Floral Emblem, Wahlenbergia gloriosa [Section 15V]. Read about the treasured Wollemi Pine, Wollemia nobilis [Section 110], inside the large cage. Relax in the coolness of the Rainforest where a tree, Callicoma serratifolia [Section 146] bears many fluffy, globular flower heads.

Such flowers!

Barbara Daly.