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.

24 December 2004

Banksia petiolaris - click for larger image

Summer heat, cooling breezes and many flowers along the Main Path so come and look. 

Starting at the far end of the Café building the Geraldton Wax cultivar, Chamelaucium uncinatum ‘Purple Pride’ [Section 12] continues to bear magenta flowers on the upright shrub.  The garden of daisies is yellow with Chrysocephalum apiculatum [Section 303] covered with small button flowers over a prostrate herb and Chrysocephalum semipapossum [Section 303] with similar flowers on upright stems.  The opposite garden of many grasses also contains the Blue Devil, Eryngium rostratum [Section 8] a small interesting plant with heads of prickly electric blue flowers.  Around the far corner an avenue of kangaroo paws include Anigozanthos flavidus ‘Bush Baby’ [Section 7] so vividly yellow and Anigozanthos flavidus ‘Bush Ruby’ [Section 7] with deep maroon flowers – they go so well together as well as other colourful flowers.

Banksia petiolaris [Section 30] arranges its stems along the ground with long upright leathery leaves and mustard coloured flower spikes rising from those stems.

Grevilleas include Grevillea ‘Poorinda Adorning’ [Section 27,24] semi-prostrate plants with needle-like foliage and red spider flowers, Grevillea ‘Coconut Ice’ [Section 25] is a small erect shrub with large terminal yellowish-pink flower clusters while Grevillea wilsonii [Section 26] is a small erect shrub with prickly leaves and conspicuous scarlet flowers.

Blandfordia grandiflora - click for larger image

At the end of this path Boronia muelleri ‘Sunset Serenade’ [Section 112] is a neat shrub dense with small pink star flowers.  The upper corner is quite picturesque with an array of Flannel Flowers, Actinotus helianthi ‘Federation Stars’ [Section 191H] small upright plants with soft greyish leaves and large velvety daisy-like flower heads.  These are scattered throughout the Sydney Flora Region.  Behind these flannel flowers Grevillea rhyolitica subsp. rhyolitica [Section 191H] displays its sprays of red flowers while around the corner, Scaevola ramosissima [Section 191H] has purple fan shaped flowers along its prostrate stems.

Flowers seen in the Sydney Flora Region include Triplarina nowraensis [Section 191H] with low arching sprays of tiny white flowers.  Pomaderris cinerea  [Section 191S] is of medium height and laden with clusters of pale yellow flowers.  Babingtonia pluriflora [Section 191S] almost covers the slope with its large spreading shrubs white with small open flowers.  Towards the top of this path, the collection of Christmas Bells, Blandfordia grandiflora [Section 191U] is stunning.  The large red and yellow bell-like flowers are on top of long upright stems surrounded by grass-like leaves.

The Rock Garden has many flowers to offer, including the deep blue flowers of Derwentia arenaria [Section 4] and the paler blue of Cheirantha telfordii [Section 4], the species named after Ian Telford, one of our botanical staff who retired a couple of years ago.  The tall tree, Grevillea robusta [Section 105] clad with large gold flower spikes .. could make a great Christmas tree, the orange-red bell-like flowers of Rhododendron macgregoriae x lochiae [Section110] are impressive.  The coolness of the Rain Forest is so enjoyable, so

Christmas Greetings to all…                                                                                   Barbara Daly.