Australian National Botanic Gardens

In Flower this Week

A weekly news sheet prepared by a Gardens' volunteer.
Numbers in square brackets [] refer to garden bed Sections. Plants in flower are in bold type.

30 July 2004

Banksia baueri - click for larger image

This walk follows the Main Path identifying some colourful flowers of winter, starting at the far end of the café building.  A Geraldton wax cultivar, Chamelaucium uncinatum ‘Purple Pride’ [Section 12] arranges its bright magenta flowers on top of an upright shrub, while Leptospermum squarrosum [Section 12] arranges its paler pink peach-blossom flowers mostly along the terminal branches.  Pass below the white paper-bark branches of the melaleucas to an emu bush, Eremophila maculata subsp. brevifolia [Section 302] a small shrub sprinkled with wine-red bugle flowers.  Possum Banksia, Banksia baueri [Sections 30,27] with its large greyish flower spikes just keeps on getting woollier, and a Heath Leaved Banksia, Banksia ericifolia var. ericifolia [Section 30] has its long brilliant gold flower spikes over a large shrub.  Adenanthos obovatus [Section 30] is a dense dwarf shrub with upright stems, scarlet with small tubular flowers.  Grevillea lanigera [Section 25] is a dense ground-cover well covered with pink and cream flowers.

So many shrubs are well endowed with colourful pink buds awaiting warmer days, although Banksia spinulosa var. collina [Section 27], down the slope, displays its deep lemon mature flower spikes prominently above the shrub.  Grevillea rosmarinifolia [Section 24] has deep red buds now mixing with maturing spider flowers, while opposite, Grevillea irrasa subsp. didymochiton [Section 26] is a larger rounded shrub with an ample supply of misty red pendulous flowers.

Acacia flexifolia - click for larger image

Correa ‘Marian’s Marvel’ [Section 112] has a profusion of red and lime green tubular flowers amid the dense spreading shrub, while a trailing plant, False Sarsaparilla, Hardenbergia violacea [Section 112] shows its first purple pea flowers.  Crossing over to the Sydney Region Flora, Grevillea baueri subsp. asperula [Section 191S] has a dense coverage of deep red buds and few maturing flowers.  At the look-out, Westringia sp. [Section 191J] has mauve flowers, seen beside the wall.  At this next curve, Epacris calvertiana var. calvertiana [Section 191E] bears small white tubular flowers on long branches of a small plant and opposite, Epacris reclinata [Section 191M] is low and spreading with small red and white tubular flowers.  Styphelia tubiflora [Section 191M], also small and wiry, has slim red and white tubular flowers with protrubing stamens.  Leucopogon neo-anglicus [Section 191M] is a dwarf dense shrub well covered with such tiny red and white tubular flowers.

After meandering through the Eucalypt Lawn, you reach an area of wattles, including Acacia flexifolia [Sections 18, 4] low, dense and spreading, with yellow soft fluffy flower balls, and Acacia consobrina [Section 18], low and upright with firmer yellow flower balls.  Hakea obtusa [Section 20] clusters its lovely pink globular flowers along the bare branches behind the dense leaves.  The Rock Garden, always with many flowers, includes Guichenotia ledifolia [Section 4] with soft pink downturned flowers mixing with its grey foliage and Banksia ‘Birthday Candles’ [Section 15V] with gold flower spikes over the dwarf shrub. 

Pass through the cooler Rainforest Gully, with many plants in varying shades of green, then into the light and down the ramp which includes Leptospermum ‘Pink Lace’ [Section 210] so well named with branches cascading down the rocks.

Good walking, many flowers …                                                                                          Barbara Daly.