*.

I ISSN 0816-178X Assdciation of ,~oci;ties for Growing iuitralIan P1 ants .: 9 h I.

. 8, rn I Newsletter No. 3 - May , 1987

INTRODUCTION

Hello, 1,hope this isn't a surprise, but here is our third news:etter. I apologise for my lack2 of ~entbc4with members. I have written about ten letters to mefib=rs apd they still sit on my desk. I just don't aet aroundlto.finalis'ing and sen'ding them. I will do bettgr from now dn:d.s 1 have cut down on my work by - the surest way to find keen people - wmbership fees. Now that we have membership fees, we are down' to abou,t ten active members. If you receive this newsletter, you make the group. If you don't and you wish to,="please write to me. As you may have noticed, I haven't casheqd any of,-the-cheques (actually my ' wife ban-ked one by mistake, sorry Sus,an). I $on" require subs **.!' as as various groups send don-ationsi' herefor fore, don't send ' 4 cheques. However, if I don't hear from you, at least annually,

> I will assume you have retired. ' s I will also explain my reas&s for irregularity and lack of time (as if anyone 'has time to spare).: My' wife has Mu1 tiple P Myeloma, an incurable form of:'

MY GARDEN .y : i About I !I garden, many of you know that I bought my house in September, '':186. In good S.G.A.P.'er fashion, I have converted

the front alld side yards into gar'den, the kids get the back yard. Most of the ,soil i,s heavy, though some of the front has been filled with coal chitter, with a sandy loan; on top. The grass was very he 11thy. I covered half of my front yard with wood chip, 6 inches de-p. This controlled the grass very well. I then planted den-ely into this. The other half, I covered with paper. then four ir~chesof sand. I have yet to out this area. In tht hoodchip side, 1 planted Tho111-asia foliosa, Petaloc. lyx, 5. rhyncocarpa, T. pygmea, Lasio. floribundum, r. -- . ---- other Lasill. Keraudrenia integrifol ia and K. coll ina. I have 's, -. found this to be disappointing. I rapidly lost all the Thomasfa's, .. exce$t 1. rhyncocarpa (grows well ). Lasio. f loribundum is doing reasonably well (the others dled). -K. colllna Is doing well, 2\ K. integrifolia flowers all .year but slowly loses leaves (I ' suspect a root infection), it has made no growth. I 'attribute \\ . I these failures due to the high humidity an2 ideal conditions for q. I fungi. Therefore, on coa'stal N.S.W.. I recommend agajnst mulching

with woodchip. Next year, I .will tell you how well sand goes. 1 .- I have also planted out my Brachychitons. I will detail the hybrids in thq next newsletter. B. discol-or is my best grower - a number of are five feet high (from seed two years ago, 18 inches high when planted ten months ago). I have a number I grafted onto flame tree stock. I am waitJng to see how long it is till they flower. I was interested to note that many plants are ~till~activelygrowing at present (May). It may be due to . h'=. their late planting out. . ( 0 I also have Commersonia fraseri growing but it has only . grown two feet in 12 months, I expected much more. . . Pottted Collection

. After my disappo; :Glenti with the Thomasia's, I considered giving them away. Howpver, I weakened and-I now have a potted coll~ction. Dennis Marqan in Sydney also has a potted collection 1. and Ian Evans in Eaglehawk, Victoria has started another. I Therefore, we have our group possessions and any help with these

* would be appreciated. Perhaps I can give more details in the n'ext issue. I have Commersonia bartramia and C. frpseri in very large pots, both about one metre high. I hope to get them to three metres and flowering. If I do, I may be able to get them to a plant shdw - if one is on at the same time. I think I will need I a horse float. Dennis Margan and I will be putting on a display . at the Sydney S.G.A.P. Show this Spring.

UNGERIA-FL-ORIBUNDA - Rare and Endangered I I visted Norfolk 1sland recentiy, a week's holiday with my wife - leaving the kids at home. I found !Norfolk Island very interesting but als'o disappointing. only 10% of the National Park . .. . - .. is relatively undisturbed (0.6% of the island). The rest is overgrow11 with weeds. There is only one specimen of the Norfolk

I Island Boobook Owl still alive, about 18 of their green parrots 4; left and they have had three species of bird become extinct in . . the last 15 years. Few places ian the world are that bad. On the : plant scene, it is slightly better. One plant. Abutilon juliaks, 1 was recently redlscovered after It was thought to be extinct for the last 60 years. A fern, Asplenium robinsonTT. is now extinct .in the wild. However, 11 plants are.fn cultivation. I :. . The plant we are interested im, .'llnger'ia floribunda, hardly rates any concern over there. It is a member'of the , I was informed when I was there that the tree- is now becomming very rare because if has not dropped seed for decades. The introduced Black rat and Polynesian rat both eat the seed in the pods. I searched and found only a few trees and of course, no seedlings. Something, will have to be done. They seem to have too many'other things to worry about over there (with good 1 reason). Perhaps, branches sent back can be grafted onto flame .r -IC C, trees to estiblish it here. .; .- .%. (After Norfolk Island, we had a week on Lord Howe Island. 'a. ** It is the very opposite, 80% beautiful National Park and even the

• c othe; 20% is tree covered. No ~terc~ljaczae. but great walking. '- . I found some very interesting plants:) 4 . . .. L. . '-. 4 ., . . SIUDY GKOUP NAMt

dl -t I have been getting a bit careless here. I must stick to the title "Brachyc,hi ton and Allied Genera Study Group" - sorry to those I confused. I won'der if we can shorten this to the

B.A.G.S. Group. J 1 L

THE GENUS BRACHYCHITCN

Brachychiton is a genus elf about 30 species. 1'2 of these are named as Brachychitons, five 3re p'i-esentl y included in Stercul ia.

and 13 are undescribed. A very thorough study a6d preliminary ' paper. naming all the spe;ies has been done by Go'rdan Guymer, * presqntly working with the Queensland herbarium. However, this has not been published yet. A.friend of mine has Gordan Gu-ymer's thesis, a massive work of 45( pages. I refer to it regularly and find it invaluable. I look .:)rward to the publication of Gordan Guymer's work and informatio on thi's genus. Unfortunately, he is not a member of the study groub,(I'don't even know if he is in the S.G.A.P.). A'second source of infcrmation is Elliott and Jones' Encyclopedia of Australian Flants: Unfortunately, this book is not very thorough. Importa~tspecies are left out and less interesting species are con:,idered "very attractive", "useful ornamental" or "excellent p,,tentialU. I will give my version below. I will try not to r peat the information. in Elliott. and Jones', much of it is uselul. I will give brief descriptions on1 y. I have drawn up a table (irom Guymey's york) to give a brief * description of every member o.f the 'genus Brachychi ton. It ds . . -. very brief, however, it should tie suff i'ient' to wet your appetites. Following this, are details of' dpecies 1 amt famil iar . with. R

Brachychiton acerifolius - Flame Tree . Tree - 15 to 20 metres, generally deciduois in winter but this depends on the origin of the seed(N0rth Queensland doesn't have a winter but a dry season insfead). Leaves,return following I "1 . f 1oweri ng. . , .' Flowers - Red, 3 cm. x 2 cm. ; pro'fuse. , In most cases, flowering is only on branches that were. 'deciduous. The flowering season is relatively short. ~istributio; - Coastal forest fromthe kh'dalhaven to North Queens1and. Habitat - Rainforest, i.e. rich soils, ample water. Cultivation and Frosts - Frequ,ently grpwn, however, rarely lives up' to cxpcctations as it requires rich soilq, ample water and no shading. Many are also mixed up with.'t?:ir flowering and deciduous habit. I suspect these plants are from different areas and are, therefore, programmed to respond to different climate stimul i. Frost tolerant, also very tolerant of poor soils and dry conditions but flowering will be rare. Killed by frosts in Canberra (-7°C).

Brachychi ton austral i s - Broad Leaf Bottle Tree Tree - Bottle tree, ten to 20 metres tall. Taller than B. rupestris. Trunk not so bottle like and the leaves broader. Flowers - White, 2 cm. x 3 cm. wide. Distribution - Wide Bay in S.E. Queensland to Chillayoe (westnf Cairns) in the north. Inland to near Roma.- Habitat - Open forest. Trees are quite scattered and even looking at the country makes me thirsty. There are large areas . of interspersed grassland, however, I suspect this is due to grazing. ., ~ult,i.'V'ation and Frosts - I have no experience growing this species and know of no-one who has. Elliott and Jones are the same. I have requested seed from the Queensland S.G;A.P. This species receives considerable frosts where it grows, however, it I is very dry also. 1 would avoid cold, wet conditions with it. i Brachychiton bidwillii I Shrub - 1 to 4 metres tall, often multi-stemmed. Where it I occurs natural ly, It sl~uulsI I u11\ the underyr orrnrl tt~ltlf01 low lflg busl~fires. In Sydney. tf grown tn full sun. thls specles often doesn't grow over 1 metre htgh. Deciduous. .. Flowers - Red, 3 cm. x 1 cm., September to December. Flowering I *is progress$ve, being over a long period. The flowers arise In clusters along the branch, not at the end 1Ike 8. acerl+ollus. - *.. Distribution - From the N.S.W. border, north to near Rockhampton. This specles also extends Inland sllghtly. Habitat - This is a plant of the drler areas (the leaves are hairy to help retain moisture). It tends t; grow on ridges more than on the lower slopes, often amcng9t grasses. Cultivation and Frosts - This 3pecIes has outstanding potential as in cool'er areas it can be expected to stay 1 metre high x 2 metres across. If shaded* it will gef higher. There Is a very good example in the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney. Flowering is fairly reg"1ar with a gbod*display virtually every Year (again, providing good 1ight) .' It must have, reasonable frost tolerance as frosts are common where it occurs naturally.

8 I have grafted this species onto flame tree roots. Grafted, it can be expected to grow to 5 x 5 metres.

Brachychiton discolor - Lacebark -Tree - Ten to 20 metres, deciduous. Flowers - Pink, often darkeroufSide. 4 cm. x 4 cm. Flowering is progress.ive from large bunches. along the branches. The

branches heed to defol'iate first. " Distribution - From Dungog (near Newcastle) in the south to near Fraser Island in Queensland. . Habitat - From rainforest to drier forests, aften in poorer soils. Cultivation and Frosts - Easily germinated arid grown but too big for dome gardens. Often grown as tt is very attractive when flowering. The ground below plants is often carpited with fallen flowers. This is one of my favourite species. Qt.jite frost tolerant. Note - seed is available from Nindethana in Mestern Australia.

Brachychiton diversifolius - Northern Kurrajong

Tree - Five to ten metres, semi-deciduous. 7 Flowers - Pale green, red' ins-ide. 1 cm. x 1 cm. Distribution - Derby in'western Australia ;cross the top to the Atherton Tablelands. Habitat - Dry monsoonal forest and open fo ests. Cultivation ~,ndFrosts - An easy species to grow, however, it does not like cold, wet winters, I have this lpecies in cul tlvatlon, however. I1 is a slow g~,ywer. I do 11uL know of ally frost tolerance. This tree is very similar to the Kurrajong from southern Australia. . 1 I Brachychiton gregorii - Desert Kurrajong I Tree To seven metres. I - - I - Flowers - Similar to B. populneus but slightly smaller. Distribution - Western Australian goldfields up to Alice Springs. Habitat - Desert. Grows under very dry conditions. Cultivation a"d Frosts - I have germ~inatedseeds a number of times but they don't like my wet winters (neiiher do I). I am I! .= not growing this specles at present: Probably well suited to i further inland. Frost tolerant. . I

L *. Brachychiton paradoxus -Tree - Shrub or small tree to eight metres tall. Deciduous prior to flowering Flowers - Red, 4 cm. x 4 cm. June to September. Distribution - Eastern half of Northern Territory, western ' half of Queensland, in the coastal gulf country and along rivers. Cultivation and Frosts - I do not know of it being in cultivation. Guy~nerconsiders it unsui tatle a$ an ornamental. In its natural habitat, it does 'iiot rhceive' frosts. . . Brachychiton populneus - Kurrajong -Tree - To ten metres tall. Flowers - White with green and red markings inside. Flowering , is much better after a dry period or on trees in hot exposed positions. The hest flowering is on branches that defoliate. Flowers are 1.5 cm. x 1.5 cm. Subspecies - Guymer considers there are two subppecies, although not official, !be Queensland S.G.A.P. seed bank offers seed of subspecies populceus and subspecies trilobus (leaves with three lobes). My seedlings with lobed leaves reverted to oval leaves on maturity, however, these were of garden origin (hybrids?). Distribution - Subspecies trilobus is more inland, Subspecies populneus being coastal. From just over the Victorian border to west of Townsville. Habitat - Open forest and grasslands (more densely wooded in the past?). Cultivation- and Frosts - Very casy though often slow growing. I tend to believe it likes being potbound. When pldnted out, it may a1 so favour rocky ground. Very frost tolerant.

Brachychiton ropestris - Bottle Tree . -Tree - Bottle tree, Five to ten metres, semi-ddciduous. Flowers - Whitish, 1 cm. x ,l, cm., September to November. . Distribution - From the 'N.s.W. bbrder to .just north of .: Rockhampton. Habitat - Open forest, very dry areas. Cultiva-tion and Frosts - Easily growrt.. here are many very 01 d specimens In Sydney, especial 1y .the Ro3al Botanic Gardens. The streets of ~omaand a number of other .idJand Queensland towns . are lined with this species. Although considered slow growing.

" I have often seen rapid growth and feel we should plant this

* species more. Suitable for a wide range of soils and conditions. ' Frost tolerant. e Brachychitbn species Darwin .** -Tree - Shrub or small tree, two to eighi:metres tall, deciduous. Flowers - Red, 4 cm. x 4 cm., progres>si\e. . in clusters along the branches. Distribution - Northern part of. the Northern Territory. especially arobnd Darwin and Katherine. I Habitat - Open forest and woodlands. Cultivation and Frosts - Widely grown in Darwin as a street tree and ornamental. I have it growing. It.died back over winter. I thought it died. To my surprise (and pleasure), it reshot from the 1ignotuber this Spring. It is slow grAwing in Newcastle but . . I expect. it to grow and flower weJ 1., .. ' Not,e - This species is the floral emblem of Darwin. Unfortunately, it is not mentioned in Elliott and Jones' Encyclopedia. Seed is avail able from the ~oihern.Territory . Conservation Service. Due to the very -large leaves of this species, I often call it the pumpkin leaf brachychiton. The leaves can be as large as pumpkin leaves and of'a similar shape..

I. Other Brathychiton species well'worth growing are: J B. velutinosus (Cape York and Papua/New Guinea) a

Brachychiton species from near Coen and Musgrave. Flowers of 5 cm, x 5 cm. Leaves with five acute lobes. This is the Brachychiton species on page 368 of Elliott and Jones' Encyclopedia. It is on the bottom of. the first'column. * Flewer Horticult. Distributian Ht Colwr Seasmn n~eid..~utent. Comments . I Jan- carruthgqsii Papua 20m red Yes High Rainf erest sp. N. G. ' May acerifolius Q,N. . 20m red Nmv- Yes High I It I1 Jan diversifmlius Q,T,W 1 On green- Semi Fair Dry rpen ferest red pepulneus Q,N,V 10m white- Oct- semi Fair 11 I1 11 re March gregmrii W,S,T 5m ;white Jan- semi F.kir Desert species July rupestris Q lorn white Sept- semi G*ad Bettle tree Nev SP* Q 10m white Oct- semi G@ad I1 I1 1 Nev australis 'Q 15n white June- semi G."ed I1 II % Sept %. 6p. Q, To 10m white Aug- semi Geed II 11 Sept 4~.'sp. W. 4m white Aug- semi Geed II II Oct _..I ...... 33. SP*,* W 4m white Aug- semi Geed 11 II C IIov velutinosis red Aug- Yes Good Rainforest sp. Oct " I discolor pink Nov- ' Ye's High Dry rainforest I Jan SP. red July- Yes II Open forest Oct II I bidwillii red Aug- .II Nov vitifolia red- April- l1 Good- green Au g fair garrawayae I1 June- II Low Oct viscidula red May- I I High Open woodland Oct I. SP red- June- 11 Low Open forest green 1.- Nov VERY Open woodland SP. red July- I I Sept . high Not in cultivatim . I1 SP. Aug- 11 Fair Open woodland 1 No v SP* .. 5m red Juljr- It Il II Sept 2-8m red Jun- VERY SP- high Floral emblem of Oct Darwin. SP* , 3-1 om' red? Kay- Low Open woodland Oct SP* 4-8m red? Way- I1 I1 I1 Oct SP* 1-3m red Jun- High ' I1 I I Nov incanus 5m l1 July- Low It II Se pt paradoxus 3-8111 red- June- Low II I1 green . Sekt viridiflor: 2-5m green- . I1 11 I1 pink tuberculat: 2-7m white Aug- Good- I I I1 )'ov These numbers ;ire the natural groups within the genus. Those species s.ill in the genus have an S. before their name. Distributions: Gi for NSW, T for the Northern 'f'erritory - - -. --. .- C~mmuni~ationa ... .-- -*----- ' I had a phone call from Ian. Evans as this ne'wsletter neared -,:> CompleJion. Ian is developing a very interesting collection of potted Thomasias, Laaiopetalumd & Commersanias. Be has many species that are unknoGh to me, some dound attractive even gs foliage plants. He rill be displaying these plants at varidue shovs.'~ envy Ian16 adillty to grow myof the speciee, hi8 big problem .is frosts. I mas surprisgd to hear how frost susceptible some species are. I Was amused by another problem Ian has. What to do with display plants thit get too leggy. With my display plants I have the opposite .Problem. They are either too small or they go brown all over just before the show. If anyone has suggestions perhaps they could contact Ian.

: mennis Margan told me he cuts his plants back strongly when they are still green stems, preferabiy nith leavee on the cut portion). Ian rill have a range of cuttings available soon. I will publish the list in the next newsletter hopefully. Alternatively you could ring i. .. him. I am looking forward tb trying some that hB has described to me. 9 Dennis Margan called in. We discussed plant names, felt leaves & decided we didn't really know what species was what. He took cuttings of some new ones & he will be giving me a range of cuttings to rebuild my collection. I hate planted ouL the sand garden I spoke about on the front page of this heursletter. Thc 'fiioma~tas, Lasiopetalums & Guichenotias in it' 'are healthy, (they haven' t lj*r~dthrough our humid summer yet). 1 am usillg a a veGy white coarse quartz.t;ype sand as a surface layer with the hope of

its brightnest; increasi& the lizht & heat intensity on the plante. R Dennis did identify one species that loves it here, 3- u~&XSii* His plants are glabrous. This form is quite hairy & my reference lackal all'& Grieve) says this is nc.t unusual. After our spring shows I look torward to planting out my display plants. Dennis's colle~tionof display plants are coming on very well. Qverseas Hembers Weanow have two overseas members. Israel & Hanna Reff, from I~rael, have bee; cultivating. Brachyehitons as bonsai subjects' for many years. i ... Instead sf. sculpturing the trunks of the plants, they are shaping the roots. Their result's are vsry impressive.,They also have two different * .varigated forms of B. maulneua. They use B. ruweatria as their main bonsai ~(~~~ect,but also .u8e B. eo~ulnaug.The only other Brachychiton * , .,.:. ..they appear to cultivate is B, digCSllPr.. Israel & Hanna are certainly very welcome members & I am looking forward to finding out their methods. They-sent 9 photographic prints, if anyone would like to see them cirop * me .a line. I'm hoping to import the varigated kurrajongs into Australia. If I do you can expect some materiel. Graf tinp, There is no grafting in this newsletter. I have enough material. I will use it $n the next newsletter that'vill also describe the ~,yk~r%. Groain~from Seed I have SOWn,..Seed of a number of species with very good success. The only species that has not been successful is perauc!renia hi;llii. I ---. , am surprised by this as this was seed off my own plant, freshly planted. . I Perhaps that was the problem. I have discovered that Brachychiton seed must be dried out before planting otherwise it'will not germinate. " ~hkspecies I have raised easily are: . . Commersonia fraseri Rulingia polycalyx Thomasia glutinosa, angustifolia. Guichenotia- macrantha. . . h I did not treat the,seed in any way, all were in a very sandy mix. I have come to the conclusion that no seed treatment is required apart from drying out completeky~prior to planting. Collection of seed The collection of seed is not difficult. It requires a careful eye kept on the sgent flowers. The pods seem to stay green until on one day they go brown' & drop the seed fairly fast. I iatch my @ants on hot days only & at the first sign 6f color change I pick the pods. - -

We should be gettigg more seed socn. I have made a request to Qld I group. The sked I have grown is from Nindethana & we have put in a - srnaii order with them. Bruce Wallace is the holder of the seedbank. Active Member List Due to requests I decided to include a list 'of active members. We have some others (sleepers), If you wisi to be raised. to active contact 'me. 1. hope this doesnl t ofTend anyone, if it does I am sorry, ring me & give me a blast. Order is alphabetical.

Eileen Croxford P.0 Box 297, GFO Albany, WA 6330 Ian Evans PO Box 60, [email protected],Vic 3556. . . , Su'son Gee - 9 Banksia Crt, Eliz Pk S.A. Harry Franz MS 652, Goorne~.J., Qld 4601 . .,* ,. David Long 19 McGregor S. , Rockhampton, Qld 4700. a John Lupton ' 29 Solander S I., Monterey, NSW 221 7.

Der nis Margan ' 58B Norman Avo, Thornleigh, NSW 2120. Gwecda McDonald 1 Balcombe Crt , Croydon, Vic 3 36. . ' B. Settle Box 325, tFlaf,f::#a,Vic. 3860. .* .. Geof. f Simmons Lot 19, Old Gynpie Rd, Elimbah, Qld 4516. Jar1 Sked Cnr Miles & Calvin Sts, Lawnton, Qld 4501. Peter Vaughan 66 Ridgeway 1 tl, New Lambton Hts, 2305. Br-uce & Thelma Wallace 20 .Pear(:e St, Eaglehawk, Vic 3556. Along with these we have the following 6roupe a8 members: South Australia region : Foothills Group, Vic. '

SGAP, Vic inc. I

Canberra SGAP. . r d Maroondah Group, Vic. Blue Mountains, NSW.

. I Burrendong Arboretum. Pine Rivers, Qld. We also exchange bulletins with a few other atate bodies. I have not listed the main inierests of-each person, however there is a definite pattern. The Victorians gror'buch more WA material, & they have access to a wider range of spec'ies in their nurseries. The Queenslanders grow &inly rainforest .species. The cut-off is between

.C Sydney & Newcastle because Dennis Margan grows.WA plants very well, but his rainforest species nsver get big (his yard's too small, he has to evici them), at my place it is the opposite. , Rase & Endaimred Sterculiaceac I There have been two books covering rare & endangered Australian plants. The authors are Leigh, Briggs, Hartley & Bodm. 35 species from ? the family Sterculiaceae are included. They are: Brachychiton tuberculatum Commersonia tatei Firmiana papuana Guichenotia apetala Hannaf ordia kesselii Heritiera littoralis Lasiopetalum acutifforum L. bracteatum L. cardiophallurn - L. dielsii L. fitzgibbonii L. glabratum I, . longistamineum L. maxwellii L. membranaceum L. micranthum L. oldfjeldii L. rotundifolium Rulingia hernannif olia R. magniflorn R. procumbens R. prostrata R. States: Q - Qld, N - NSW, V - Vie, Y - Tas, S - SA, W - WA, T - NT.

I Thomasla brachystachys K W T. dielsii w f 3K T. discolor a 2BC W T. formosa 2K W T. gardn eri 2V W T. glutinosa 2V W

T. laxoflora L 2K W T. montana 2E W T. multiflora 3 W * , ... T. quercifolia 3 w , . T. solanacea 2RC W

T. . I tenuivesta 2K' W v CODE: 2 -known from a range of less than 100 kms 3 - I1 11 11 I1 11 more I1 I1 11

t i' -.. E -endangered, at risk of extinction. - -. V -vulnerable, at risk of extinction if present conditions change, eg, fires too frequeqtly, road widening or grazing. R -rare, 3 C -conserved in a national park or similar. i K -poorly known cpecies. If there is nojnumber there are no other I ! locations known apart from the original discovery site. i

BRACHYC~~IMN B ALLIED GENERA STUDY GROUP Leader: P. Va