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.

27 March 2009

Babingtonia pluriflora - click for larger image

This week’s walk looks at the Banks Loop, and then follows the path of “Who Lives Here?”.

At the far end of the Ellis Rowan Building, a Large Fruited Grey Gum Eucalyptus canaliculata on your right [Section 240] has a limb arching over the path. This has masses of white flowers above [Section 131]. Continue on. Just before you reach the Banks Loop, on your left [Section 12] is a Dwarf Bottlebrush Callistemon subulatus, a small shrub with red brushes. Veer right onto the Banks Loop. On your left [Section 143] is an emu bush Eremophila bowmanii, a low shrub with grey leaves and large tubular mauve flowers. A little farther on, on the left, is Crowea ‘Festival’, a dense shrub with a spectacular flowering of bright pink star flowers. Next to it, just coming into flower, is a large shrub, Deua Grevillea Grevillea rhyolitica subsp. rhyolitica, with orange-red spider flowers. A little farther on, on the right [Section 307] is a group of Babingtonia ‘Howie’s Sweet Midget’, forming an attractive dense low clump 2m across. There are a few tiny white flowers on the far side. Continuing, on the left [Section 143], is an attractive wattle, Acacia beadleana, a rather straggly small leaved shrub with bright yellow flower balls. Just after you pass the end of the loop, [Section 143] there is a Swamp Banksia Banksia robur. It is a small tree. Its flower spikes in bud near the top of the tree are green. The spent flowers are brown squat candles. A bit farther on, on the right [Section 308] is a large shrub of Banksia ‘Giant Candles’. Its candle shaped flower spikes are at all stages, and range in colour from orange to brown. A little farther on, on the right is a narrow shrub with flowers with white petals and long white stamens. This is Syzygium sp..

After leaving the Banks Loop, turn right onto the bitumen road. On your right [Section143] is a group of four small upright plants of Narrow-Leaved Plectranthus Plectranthus alloplectus. This threatened species has small bright purple one-lipped flowers along the stems. On your left [Section 12] is a group of large shrubs of Tall Baeckea Babingtonia pluriflora with masses of small white flowers.

Crowea 'Festival'' - click for larger image

Turn right to follow the “Who Lives Here?” trail. On your right [Section 143] is a tall tree of Coast Banksia Banksia integrifolia subsp. integrifolia. It has pale yellow-green fat candles and broad leaves. Continue following the trail to the right. There is a group of skinny plants of a self-sown everlasting Xerochrysum, one with white flowers, the rest with golden flowers, on the right. To return, follow the path to its end, and then turn left onto the bitumen road.

Betty Wood