In Flower This Week

4 April 2003

Flowers edging Banks Walk continue to be colourful. They include Common Heath, Victoria’s state floral emblem, Epacris impressa [Section 174] with soft pink tubular flowers on long lanky stems and Epacris microphylla [Section 174] with white star flowers on similar plants. Scaevola ‘New Blue’ [Section 174] continues to be radiant with its blue fan-flowers covering the prostrate plant and a wattle, Acacia iteaphylla [Section 210], drapes its branches covered with perfumed fluffy yellow flower balls over the wall.

From the path on the far side of the Rainforest Gully, Grevillea ‘Coconut Ice’ [Section 124] is a small shrub with terminal conical flowers shaded cream and pink. On the other side of the Brittle Gum Lawn, Banksia spinulosa var. spinulosa [Section 110] bears many upright cylindrical golden flower spikes with red styles, while, in the triangular bed, a wax flower cultivar, Chamelaucium ‘Cascade Brook’ [Section 17], has short fine leaves and pale pink open waxy flowers. Close by is Epacris calvertiana [Section 17] with white tubular flowers clustered along the upright stems. The opposite corner has a stand of neat dense shrubs, Crowea ‘Festival’ [Section 123], well covered with starry pink flowers. The dense entanglement dotted with orange fruits is the Wombat Berry climber, Eustrephus latifolius [Section 123]. Eucryphia wilkiei [Section 123], close by, is a neat small shrub with small saucer-shaped cream flowers…really lovely! Opposite, Commersonia fraseri [Section 140] is a tall shrub with soft hairy foliage and open clusters of small lacey flowers.

Banksia speciosa [Section 37] is an irregularly shaped shrub of medium size with long slim, deeply serrated leaves and large cream cylindrical flowers on the top. Along this side path are numerous banksias including Banksia oblongifolia [Section 37], with deep green immature pencil spikes maturing to green cylindrical flowers, and several Banksia ericifolia var. ericifolia [Section 37] shrubs of various sizes, all with fiery orange, almost red, flower spikes. Banksia media [Section 37] has a gnarled old trunk and lovely ochre-coloured larger flower spikes. Surprisingly, a waratah, Telopea mongaensis [Section 37] has many flowers, not as large as those in season. They are scarlet in colour and worth viewing. Another banksia, Banksia marginata [Section 37], the only species native to the ACT, is a large shrub with smaller lemon flower spikes mixed with the many dark spent spikes. Note the varying leaf shapes of these banksias…

Lambertia formosa - click for larger image

Lambertia formosa [Section 37], seen on the short path up the steps, is an open shrub with unique clusters of red tubular flowers. Along the top path, Grevillea victoriae [Section 37] is quite an old, many-branched shrub with pendent clusters of rust-coloured flowers. It is pleasant walking through the grove of she-oaks, where you can find Allocasuarina torulosa  [Section 40], Forest Oak, a medium spreading tree with deeply furrowed bark and covered with rust-coloured male flower spikes. At the far corner, Callistemon salignus [Section 41] is a tall spreading shrub and, although not in flower, is very attractive as its new growth is tipped with red.

Great walking, perfect autumn days, and superb flowers…                      Barbara Daly.