DOCSLIB.ORG

Associations of Societies for Growing Australian Plants

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Associations of Societies for Growing Australian Plants Page 1 Associations of Societies for Growing Australian Plants – Rainforest Study Group – No.62 (7) June 2006 Associations of Societies for Growing Australian Plants ASGAP Rainforest Study Group NEWSLETTER No 62. (7) June 2006 ISSN 0729-5413 Annual Subscription $5, $10 overseas Photos: www.web-a-file.com Study Group Webpage (under construction): http://farrer.csu.edu.au/ASGAP/rainfor.html Email: [email protected] Address: Kris Kupsch, 28 Plumtree Pocket, Burringbar, Australia, 2483. Ph. (02) 66771466 Mob. 0439557438 Introduction ASGAP trip to Sydney Nov 2005 It has been a long while since I wrote a During my brief visit to Sydney in November newsletter, I apologise for taking so long. last year as part of an invitation to speak at a Since the last newsletter the family and I have SGAP meeting in Ermington, I got to do the moved back to the Wet Tropics. I now work following: as an Environmental Scientist undertaking 1. I was escorted by Cas Liber, ASGAP vegetation surveys and compiling Banksia Study Group leader. Cas environmental management plans for parts of toured me through the Botanic the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area. This Gardens, his garden, among others. has been a rather large transition, leaving Many thanks to Cas and his family. behind my garden and all of my immediate 2. I visited Betty Rymers garden at plans in NSW; the job was too good to refuse. Kenthurst. Betty has a notable I wish everyone the best with their rainforest garden including a large endeavours and hope this newsletter was Brachychiton discolor, Dianella worth the wait. tasmanica and an unusual variegated 1. Membership- I will not be asking for Pisonia umbellifera. Thanks for the renewals upon closing of this financial year, visit Betty and the Pisonia cuttings instead I will send this edition and will grew! contain a notice within the next for those 3. I visited Alan Fairly, author of needing renewal. Please send letters to the ‘Seldom Seen’. Alan’s Banksia with NSW address until I settle down at a more ‘deflexed’ flower spikes was most permanent location. amazing. Thanks Alan. 2 Webpage- a webpage is being 4. I visited Pip Gibian’s garden at Dural, constructed for the Study Group. This will be which surprised me with many improved on in the coming months. tropical species (especially Phaleria 3. Photo gallery- some newsletter clerodendron and Cupaniopsis photos have been included as a webpage to diploglottoides). Read further about reduce costs. Sorry for those persons without Pips experiences within this the use of the Internet. Please ask if you want newsletter. Thanks Pip. to download or use these images for any 5. I visited Jo Hambrett, leader of ASGAP reason at all. Username ‘tropicalbotanics’ Garden Design Study Group. Jo’s Password ‘4511113’ garden uses both rainforest and 4. Article incentive scheme- I’m offering woodland species to great effect. an incentive for people who are willing to Thanks again Jo. compose a well researched article on a topic 6. Ian and Tamara Cox’s garden at which relates to rainforest plant cultivation Kenthurst is an amazing sandstone and other rainforest based science. Every garden. This really taught me how article must be discussed with me prior to narrow minded I am. Many approval. Information on temperate species is Grevilleas, Banksias and Ferns are highly desirable. Please email or call me to being grown. Thanks Ian and discuss this first. Tamara. Page 2 Associations of Societies for Growing Australian Plants – Rainforest Study Group – No.62 (7) June 2006 Severe T. C. Larry the integrity of these communities. Small Compiled by Kris Kupsch, Rainforest Study Group Leader rainforest remnants many on alluvium or I had just moved back to tropical Queensland basalt have been very hard hit by TC Larry. after spending a year in NE NSW, when it Within the Innisfail-Babinda areas all linear was obvious that a severe tropical cyclone small fragments with a high edge to core was brewing in the Coral Sea. Whilst living ratio, are now unrecognisable and now prone in Cairns between 2002-2005 only a couple to invasion by vines and exotic grasses, which of small Coral Sea disturbances occurred. increase susceptibility to fire and displace Severe Tropical Cyclone Larry crossed the secretive species. Additionally gardens and coast just 70km to the southeast of where I arboretums, which have taken decades to was living. I was living in Atherton, which is construct, are now unrecognisable and are usually considered a ‘safe haven’ from the missing many prized feature specimens that exposed tropical coast, however Larry moved are rare and hard to obtain. Notably non- native collections were worst affected. at such a slow speed (~15km/hr) that little intensity was lost once it smashed Innisfail The destruction from the cyclone not only and the coastal tourist town of Mission Beach. brought life to an end for some forest giants it It tracked west directly up the Johnstone also created life for others. Barely a few Valley affecting some estimated 500 km2 of weeks after the storm a ‘mast’ flowering of the Wet Tropics. I had never seen anything several notable species including Brombya like it before. Experiencing horizontal rain platynema, Medicosma sessiliflora, and pulsing winds that roar like you’re Xanthostemon chrysant hus, X. whitei and standing next to a jet engine for 3 hours, Pullea stutzeri were observed. It could be really does change your appreciation for suggested that the life history traits of these calm sunny days. Following the storm the species have evolved or been influenced by affect these winds had on pristine rainforest disturbance events such as cyclones. It may was incalculably obvious. The rainforests also help to explain why there are more within the Palmerston NP and those of the pioneer species (band-aid species) within coastal ranges facing the ocean (Graham, tropical rainforests compared to subtropical Basilisk, Walter Hill, Francis and Bellenden rainforests. Without events such as these the Ker Ranges) bore the full brunt of the very biodiversity of a given area of forest would destructive unimpeded clockwise vortex, become lower due to reduced niche variance. courtesy of the warm tropical ocean. This forms the basis of the ‘Intermediate Mountain ranges, which were once covered Disturbance Hypothesis’ where diversity is in luxuriant mesophyll forests, were reduced maintained due to some areas of forest always being in a transitional state of development. to sticks from afar resembling woodland ecosystems. Ridge tops showed obvious Upon inspection of post cyclone areas it was damage with complete canopy collapse a found that some species showed a far greater widespread feature. Traversing through tolerance to cyclonic winds than others. cyclone-damaged forests is very difficult. Within the Innisfail area, trees still standing, Upon a field visit to the Palmerston area, I not uprooted but missing branches were was shocked by the degree of damage and ranked as having a ‘reasonable’ degree of subsequent increase in sunlight reaching the tolerance, whilst those still possessing forest floor. One element however was within branches were ‘significantly’ tolerant; the forests favour, it has been cloudy and needless to say many were ‘totally intolerant’. rainy almost everyday since Larry arrived on The following species illustrated significant the 20th March, thus providing protection to tolerance to cyclonic winds: Flindersia spp. understorey species and reducing the threat especially F. schottiana which didn’t lose of dry season fires. Incidentally, where I now leaves even within 200km/hr winds, live, there have been no more than 10 days rainforest Myrtaceae species especially where the sun has been sighted for 4 months; rheophyte species such as Callistemon and it has been either heavily overcast, drizzling Xanthostemon were very tolerant, or raining on all the other days. Calophyllum inophyllum, mature, but not Weather events such as TC Larry are young Agathis robusta survived well (Hoop completely natural and stronger cyclonic Pines were very susceptible), Argyrodendron events have occurred in the past, however spp. were notably tolerant within the forest disturbance within tropical systems in the canopy, Ficus spp. were mostly tolerant due modern world provides a challenge, as to their flexible branches, paddock specimens foreign processes now exist which endanger of Alstonia scholaris endured well and native palms did well too. Page 3 Associations of Societies for Growing Australian Plants – Rainforest Study Group – No.62 (7) June 2006 The animal life was undoubtedly affected as 1) Australian National Herbarium, CPBR, CSIRO Plant Industry, G.P.O. Box 1600, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia. the leaves and all the fruit and developing 2) Division of Botany and Zoology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia. flowers were destroyed in the storm. I noticed 3) Harvard University Herbaria, 22 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge MA a major increase in birds to artificial feeders, 01238, USA; Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3AB, United Kingdom. as many as 50 honey eaters visited following the storm however after 4 months as few as 5 Many will be hesitant in adopting these visit. Increases in road kills were observed, nomenclature changes. I certainly can especially ‘secretive’ species, which were identify parity within the original genera obviously distressed. especially by fruits; however I lack knowledge to differ on this matter. As much as I was concerned by the state of once intact rainforests I was also engrossed Notes on Athrotaxis by the opportunity it gave to me as a botanist. Southern Conifers within the family Cupressaceae I was presented with an array of specimens Composed by Phil Parsons, Launceston Botanical Gardens usually out of reach, within the forest athro= clustered canopy. The forest floor was littered with taxis= arrangement (in reference to the clustered scales on the seed cone) canopy vegetation including epiphytes, vines and interestingly the mature leaves of forest Many stands of Athrotaxis are found in the giants, which are much smaller and rigid alpine areas of Tasmania.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • NSW Rainforest Trees Part
    This document has been scanned from hard-copy archives for research and study purposes. Please note not all information may be current. We have tried, in preparing this copy, to make the content accessible to the widest possible audience but in some cases we recognise that the automatic text recognition maybe inadequate and we apologise in advance for any inconvenience this may cause. · RESEARCH NOTE No. 35 ~.I~=1 FORESTRY COMMISSION OF N.S.W. RESEARCH NOTE No. 35 P)JBLISHED 197R N.S.W. RAINFOREST TREES PART VII FAMILIES: PROTEACEAE SANTALACEAE NYCTAGINACEAE GYROSTEMONACEAE ANNONACEAE EUPOMATIACEAE MONIMIACEAE AUTHOR A.G.FLOYD (Research Note No. 35) National Library of Australia card number and ISBN ISBN 0 7240 13997 ISSN 0085-3984 INTRODUCTION This is the seventh in a series ofresearch notes describing the rainforest trees of N.S. W. Previous publications are:- Research Note No. 3 (I 960)-N.S.W. Rainforest Trees. Part I Family LAURACEAE. A. G. Floyd and H. C. Hayes. Research Note No. 7 (1961)-N.S.W. Rainforest Trees. Part II Families Capparidaceae, Escalloniaceae, Pittosporaceae, Cunoniaceae, Davidsoniaceae. A. G. Floyd and H. C. Hayes. Research Note No. 28 (I 973)-N.S.W. Rainforest Trees. Part III Family Myrtaceae. A. G. Floyd. Research Note No. 29 (I 976)-N.S.W. Rainforest Trees. Part IV Family Rutaceae. A. G. Floyd. Research Note No. 32 (I977)-N.S.W. Rainforest Trees. Part V Families Sapindaceae, Akaniaceae. A. G. Floyd. Research Note No. 34 (1977)-N.S.W. Rainforest Trees. Part VI Families Podocarpaceae, Araucariaceae, Cupressaceae, Fagaceae, Ulmaceae, Moraceae, Urticaceae.
    [Show full text]
  • TML Propagation Protocols
    PROPAGATION PROTOCOLS This document is intended as a guide for Tamborine Mountain Landcare members who wish to assist our regeneration projects by growing some of the plants needed. It is a work in progress so if you have anything to add to the protocols – for example a different but successful way of propagating and growing a particular plant – then please give it to Julie Lake so she can add it to the document. The idea is that our shared knowledge and experience can become a valuable part of TML's intellectual property as well as a useful source of knowledge for members. As there are many hundreds of plants native to Tamborine Mountain, the protocols list will take a long time to complete, with growing information for each plant added alphabetically as time permits. While the list is being compiled by those members with competence in this field, any TML member with a query about propagating a particular plant can post it on the website for other me mb e r s to answer. To date, only protocols for trees and shrubs have been compiled. Vines and ferns will be added later. Fruiting times given are usual for the species but many rainforest plants flower and fruit opportunistically, according to weather and other conditions unknown to us, thus fruit can be produced at any time of year. Finally, if anyone would like a copy of the protocols, contact Julie on [email protected] and she’ll send you one. ………………….. Growing from seed This is the best method for most plants destined for regeneration projects for it is usually fast, easy and ensures genetic diversity in the regenerated landscape.
    [Show full text]
  • PLANT COMMUNITY FIELD GUIDE Introduction to Rainforest
    PLANT COMMUNITY FIELD GUIDE Introduction to Rainforest Communities Table of Contents (click to go to page) HCCREMS Mapping ....................................................................... 3 Field Data Sheet ............................................................................. 4 Which of the following descriptions best describes your site? ................................................................ 5 Which plant community is it? .......................................................... 9 Rainforest communities of the Lower Hunter .................................. 11 Common Rainforest Species of the Lower Hunter ........................................................................ 14 A picture guide to common rainforest species of the Lower Hunter ........................................................... 17 Weeding of Rainforest Remnants ................................................... 25 Rainforest Regeneration near Black Jacks Point ............................ 27 Protection of Rainforest Remnants in the Lower Hunter & the Re-establishment of Diverse, Indigenous Plant Communities ... 28 Guidelines for a rainforest remnant planting program ..................... 31 Threatened Species ....................................................................... 36 References ..................................................................................... 43 Acknowledgements......................................................................... 43 Image Credits ................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • A4 Template with Cover and Following Page
    Powerful Owl Project Update – December 2015 Caroline Wilson, Holly Parsons & Janelle Thomas Thank-you to all of you for being involved with another successful year of the Powerful Owl Project. We had some changes this year, with our main grant funding finishing Caroline Wilson and Janelle Thomas from the Threatened Bird Network (TBN) and Holly Parsons from the Birds in Backyards Program took over the running of the project for BirdLife Australia. Generous donations from the NSW Twitch-a-thon has allowed us to complete this year’s research and allows us to continue in 2016. This season we have had over 120 registered volunteers involved, including over 50 new volunteers who were recruited to the project early this year. You have helped us monitor over 80 Powerful Owl breeding sites, allowing the project to cover a lot of ground throughout Greater Sydney, the NSW Central Coast and Newcastle. The data you have collected is really important for the effective management of urban Powerful Owl populations and this information is shared with land mangers and local councils. So thank-you! We really appreciate the amazing work carried out by our volunteers; with your help we have learned so much about these birds, and this information is helping us protect this unique and amazing species. Read on to hear about all we have achieved in 2015. Powerful Owl chick from 2015, peeking out of the hollow (taken by Christine Melrose) March 2015 workshop The March workshop was held to train our new volunteers, update everyone on the findings from the project and to say thank-you to our existing volunteers – some of which have been with us since 2011.
    [Show full text]
  • In China: Phylogeny, Host Range, and Pathogenicity
    Persoonia 45, 2020: 101–131 ISSN (Online) 1878-9080 www.ingentaconnect.com/content/nhn/pimj RESEARCH ARTICLE https://doi.org/10.3767/persoonia.2020.45.04 Cryphonectriaceae on Myrtales in China: phylogeny, host range, and pathogenicity W. Wang1,2, G.Q. Li1, Q.L. Liu1, S.F. Chen1,2 Key words Abstract Plantation-grown Eucalyptus (Myrtaceae) and other trees residing in the Myrtales have been widely planted in southern China. These fungal pathogens include species of Cryphonectriaceae that are well-known to cause stem Eucalyptus and branch canker disease on Myrtales trees. During recent disease surveys in southern China, sporocarps with fungal pathogen typical characteristics of Cryphonectriaceae were observed on the surfaces of cankers on the stems and branches host jump of Myrtales trees. In this study, a total of 164 Cryphonectriaceae isolates were identified based on comparisons of Myrtaceae DNA sequences of the partial conserved nuclear large subunit (LSU) ribosomal DNA, internal transcribed spacer new taxa (ITS) regions including the 5.8S gene of the ribosomal DNA operon, two regions of the β-tubulin (tub2/tub1) gene, plantation forestry and the translation elongation factor 1-alpha (tef1) gene region, as well as their morphological characteristics. The results showed that eight species reside in four genera of Cryphonectriaceae occurring on the genera Eucalyptus, Melastoma (Melastomataceae), Psidium (Myrtaceae), Syzygium (Myrtaceae), and Terminalia (Combretaceae) in Myrtales. These fungal species include Chrysoporthe deuterocubensis, Celoporthe syzygii, Cel. eucalypti, Cel. guang­ dongensis, Cel. cerciana, a new genus and two new species, as well as one new species of Aurifilum. These new taxa are hereby described as Parvosmorbus gen.
    [Show full text]
  • The Wood Cross Sections of Hermann Nördlinger (1818–1897)
    IAWA Journal, Vol. 29 (4), 2008: 439–457 THE WOOD CROSS SECTIONS OF HERMANN NÖRDLINGER (1818–1897) Ben Bubner Leibniz-Zentrum für Agrarlandschaftsforschung (ZALF) e.V., Institut für Landschaftsstoffdynamik, Eberswalder Str. 84, 15374 Müncheberg, Germany [E-mail: [email protected]] SUMMARY Hermann Nördlinger (1818–1897), forestry professor in Hohenheim, Germany, published a series of wood cross sections in the years 1852 to 1888 that are introduced here to the modern wood anatomist. The sec- tions, which vary from 50 to 100 μm in thickness, are mounted on sheets of paper and their quality is high enough to observe microscopic details. Their technical perfection is as remarkable as the mode of distribution: sections of 100 wood species were presented in a box together with a booklet containing wood anatomical descriptions. These boxes were dis- tributed as books by the publisher Cotta, from Stuttgart, Germany, with a maximum circulation of 500 per volume. Eleven volumes comprise 1100 wood species from all over the world. These include not only conifers and broadleaved trees but also shrubs, ferns and palms representing a wide variety of woody structures. Excerpts of this collection were also pub- lished in Russian, English and French. Today, volumes of Nördlingerʼs cross sections are found in libraries throughout Europe and the United States. Thus, they are relatively easily accessible to wood anatomists who are interested in historic wood sections. A checklist with the content of each volume is appended. Key words: Cross section, wood collection, wood anatomy, history. INTRODUCTION Wood scientists who want to distinguish wood species anatomically rely on thin sec- tions mounted on glass slides and descriptions in books that are illustrated with micro- photographs.
    [Show full text]
  • Approved NSW & National Recovery Plan Eidothea Hardeniana
    Approved NSW & National Recovery Plan Eidothea hardeniana September 2004 © Department of Environment and Conservation (NSW), July 2004. This work is copyright. However, material presented in this plan may be copied for personal use or published for educational purposes, providing that any extracts are fully acknowledged. Apart from this and any other use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced without prior written permission from NSW Department of Environment and Conservation. NSW Department of Environment and Conservation 43 Bridge Street (PO Box 1967) Hurstville NSW 2220 Tel: 02 9585 6444 www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au Requests for information or comments regarding the recovery program for the Nightcap Oak are best directed to: The Nightcap Oak Recovery Co-ordinator Threatened Species Unit, North East Branch NSW Department of Environment and Conservation Locked Bag 914 Coffs Harbour NSW 2450 Tel: 02 6651 5946 Cover illustrator: Lesley Elkan © Botanic Gardens Trust, Sydney Cover illustration: Adult and juvenile leaves and fruit of Eidothea hardeniana This plan should be cited as follows: NSW Department of Environment and Conservation 2004, Recovery Plan for the Nightcap Oak (Eidothea hardeniana), Department of Environment and Conservation (NSW), Hurstville. ISBN 0 7313 6781 2 Recovery Plan The Nightcap Oak Recovery Plan for the Nightcap Oak (Eidothea hardeniana) Foreword The New South Wales Government established a new environment agency on 24 September 2003, the Department of Environment and Conservation (NSW), which incorporates the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service. Responsibility for the preparation of Recovery Plans now rests with this new department. This document constitutes the New South Wales State and National Recovery Plan for Eidothea hardeniana Weston & Kooyman (Nightcap Oak), and as such considers the conservation requirements of the species across its range.
    [Show full text]
  • Societyforgrowing Australianplants
    Society for Growing Australian Plants (Queensland Region) Inc. Cairns Branch PO Box 199 Earlville Qld 4870 Newsletter No. 101 July 20 10 Society Office Bearers Chairperson Tony Roberts 40 551 292 Vice Chairperson Mary Gandini 40 542 190 Secretary David Warmington 40 443 398 Treasurer Robert Jago 40 552 266 Membership Subscriptions- Qld Region - Renewal $30.00, New Members $35, each additional member of household $2.00 Student - Renewal $20 New Members $25.00, Cairns Branch Fees - $10.00 Full Year To access our Library for the loan of publications, please contact David Warmington Newsletter Editor: Tony Roberts [email protected] Dates to remember Cairns Branch Meetings and Excursions – third Saturday of each month. NEXT MEETING AND EXCURSION 17 July TBA. Please see note below. Tablelands Branch Excursion– Sunday following the meeting on the fourth Wednesday of the month. Any queries please contact Chris Jaminon 4095 2882 or [email protected] Townsville Branch General Meeting Please contact John Elliot: [email protected] for more information Crystal Ball July Aug - Redden Island Our official July excursion was to White Mountains/Burra Range. As only one member Sept – Upper Harvey Ck was able to attend, a second excursion is being Oct - Barron Falls’ boardwalk/Kuranda offered on Sat 17 th July. If you would like to attend, please contact Bob Jago. Once numbers Nov - Ellie Point are ascertained, a local destination will be selected by consensus. July 2010 Page 1 of 5 The eighteenth International Botanical Congress is being held Melbourne in July next year. It is a massive event, held only once every five years.
    [Show full text]
  • Plant Life of Western Australia
    INTRODUCTION The characteristic features of the vegetation of Australia I. General Physiography At present the animals and plants of Australia are isolated from the rest of the world, except by way of the Torres Straits to New Guinea and southeast Asia. Even here adverse climatic conditions restrict or make it impossible for migration. Over a long period this isolation has meant that even what was common to the floras of the southern Asiatic Archipelago and Australia has become restricted to small areas. This resulted in an ever increasing divergence. As a consequence, Australia is a true island continent, with its own peculiar flora and fauna. As in southern Africa, Australia is largely an extensive plateau, although at a lower elevation. As in Africa too, the plateau increases gradually in height towards the east, culminating in a high ridge from which the land then drops steeply to a narrow coastal plain crossed by short rivers. On the west coast the plateau is only 00-00 m in height but there is usually an abrupt descent to the narrow coastal region. The plateau drops towards the center, and the major rivers flow into this depression. Fed from the high eastern margin of the plateau, these rivers run through low rainfall areas to the sea. While the tropical northern region is characterized by a wet summer and dry win- ter, the actual amount of rain is determined by additional factors. On the mountainous east coast the rainfall is high, while it diminishes with surprising rapidity towards the interior. Thus in New South Wales, the yearly rainfall at the edge of the plateau and the adjacent coast often reaches over 100 cm.
    [Show full text]
  • Rates of Molecular Evolution and Diversification in Plants: Chloroplast
    Duchene and Bromham BMC Evolutionary Biology 2013, 13:65 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2148/13/65 RESEARCH ARTICLE Open Access Rates of molecular evolution and diversification in plants: chloroplast substitution rates correlate with species-richness in the Proteaceae David Duchene* and Lindell Bromham Abstract Background: Many factors have been identified as correlates of the rate of molecular evolution, such as body size and generation length. Analysis of many molecular phylogenies has also revealed correlations between substitution rates and clade size, suggesting a link between rates of molecular evolution and the process of diversification. However, it is not known whether this relationship applies to all lineages and all sequences. Here, in order to investigate how widespread this phenomenon is, we investigate patterns of substitution in chloroplast genomes of the diverse angiosperm family Proteaceae. We used DNA sequences from six chloroplast genes (6278bp alignment with 62 taxa) to test for a correlation between diversification and the rate of substitutions. Results: Using phylogenetically-independent sister pairs, we show that species-rich lineages of Proteaceae tend to have significantly higher chloroplast substitution rates, for both synonymous and non-synonymous substitutions. Conclusions: We show that the rate of molecular evolution in chloroplast genomes is correlated with net diversification rates in this large plant family. We discuss the possible causes of this relationship, including molecular evolution driving diversification, speciation increasing the rate of substitutions, or a third factor causing an indirect link between molecular and diversification rates. The link between the synonymous substitution rate and clade size is consistent with a role for the mutation rate of chloroplasts driving the speed of reproductive isolation.
    [Show full text]
  • Report by John Knight Blessed by a Gorgeous Autumn Day, and the Promise of an Interesting Program, a Large Gathering Arrived at Anne and Michael’S Durras Property
    Report by John Knight Blessed by a gorgeous autumn day, and the promise of an interesting program, a large gathering arrived at Anne and Michael’s Durras property. The warm and dry conditions of recent weeks continue, and the expected display of Sunshine Wattle, Acacia terminalis did not eventuate, but the bushland around North Durras did present us with quite a diversity of plants to keep everyone interested. During a relaxed morning tea, enjoyed on the deck in the sunshine, the meeting kicked off with a ‘show and tell’ session. Phil and Catriona were once again to the fore, with a range of Banksias and Hakeas. A highlight was Hakea bakeriana, a medium sized shrub which is found in the heaths of the central coast. Foliage is a bright fresh green, and although it looks prickly, is quite benign. Brilliant pink to red flowers are borne on older wood, but still well presented. Catriona put in a plug for the Isopogon and Petrophile Study Group, which she and Phil lead. And with flowers as shown on her Isopogon cuneatus specimen, it is little wonder members get enthusiastic about these plants. Then comes the revelation that for success, they are best grafted onto hardy eastern states rootstock. Phil continues to experiment with this process, and is having good success using a hybrid of Isopogon mnoraifolius from the northern tablelands. Banksia vincentia, the most recently named Banksia, occurs in a swampy area near industrial development at Vincentia on the NSW South Coast. There are just a few plants remaining in the wild, and the population is seriously threatened by development and changed drainage patterns.
    [Show full text]
  • Ceratopetalum Gummiferum
    Ceratopetalum gummiferum Family: Cunoniaceae Distribution: Open forest and rainforest of New South Wales, generally east of the Great Dividing Range. Common New South Wales Christmas bush Name: Derivation of Ceratopetalum....from Greek ceras, a horn and petalon, Name: a petal, referring to the petal shape of one species. gummiferum....producing a gum Conservation Not considered to be at risk in the wild. Status: General Description: Ceratopetalum is a small genus of 5 species, all occurring in Australia and New Guinea. C.gummiferum is the best known species and is widely cultivated both in Australia and overseas. The white flowers of Ceratopetalum gummiferum appear in October.... ....followed by the red sepals at around Christmas time. Photos: Brian Walters NSW Christmas bush is generally a large shrub or small tree which may reach 10 metres in its natural habit but is usually much smaller in cultivation where it rarely exceeds 5 metres. The foliage of the plant is very attractive. The leaves are up to 70mm long and are divided into three leaflets which are finely serrated. The new growth is often pink or bronze coloured. A mature NSW Christmas Bush in full display Photo: Brian Walters The main attraction of the plant is the massed display of the red sepals of the developing seed capsules which are commonly mistaken to be flowers. These are at their peak in early to mid summer, usually at Christmas in Australia. The true flowers are white in colour and are seen in late spring, although they are not particularly conspicuous. The sepals and foliage are widely used for cut flowers and the plant is farmed commercially for that purpose.
    [Show full text]