Austalian Plants Societ Armidale & Distict Group PO Box 735 Armidale NSW 2350 hp://www.anps-armidale.org.au Volume 33, No. 2 ISSN Autumn Edi5on 2012 Our new logo: Crowea exalata ssp. magnifolia It"s Banksia time in Maria"s garden Banksia marginata ʻHoneybrush" Tasmania I have been growing this very unusual form of Banksia marginata for some years now. This is the third flowering and My magnificent Banksia serrata #Superman" the brushes are much larger than local forms and a beautiful honey colour. It is planted in heavy soil and has not been touched by the frost. My tree is now about 3 metres high but IMPORTANT could grow taller. I have collected seed and will be Some of our members are missing out on important noces. propagating from it. Banksia marginata is very variable and If you do not have an email address perhaps you have a I"ve been told that they will probably be split at some stage. In friend, relave or neighbour with one who can pass on those the meantime I have given this form the name #Honeybrush" messages. Please send me a contact email address so we can to distinguish it from other Tasmanian forms. add you to our list. Contact Us: Armidale & District Group! PO Box 735 Armidale NSW 2350 President/Newsletter: !! Maria Hitchcock !Ph: 6775 1139 !! E: [email protected] Secretary: !!!Barry Tolchard !!Ph: 6772 7512 !! E: [email protected] Treasurer: !!! John Nevin !!Ph: 6775 2128 !! E: [email protected] Thank you to all contributors. All ar5cles, snippets and photos are welcome. There is NO DEADLINE for this newsleBer. Ar5cles will be included based on a FIRST COME basis. Please send your ar5cles, snippets, leBers to Maria at [email protected] or send a hard copy to PO Box 735 Armidale NSW 2350. PHOTOS should be sent individually as jpg files either via email or copied onto a disk. APS NSW - Armidale & District Group Autumn 2012 Newsle=er page 1 GROUP INFORMATION The Armidale and District Group of APS---NSW started on 6th August, 1977 as the New England Group of the Society for Growing Australian Plants. It has been running conMnuously since that Mme with a couple of name changes. We are a very friendly and helpful group who enjoy monthly forums and meeMngs, garden visits and field trips to help members enjoy the search for knowledge about our nave flora and our local environment. We range from raw beginners to others who have been gardening and researching for many years - all willing to share their knowledge. Formal Mee5ngs are held at 5.30pm on the second Tuesday of each month. Members are welcome to aend. Nave Plant and Garden Forums are held in the TAFE Library Seminar Room on the 3rd Tuesday of each month (except June, July, December and January) from 7.30 – 9.30 where members talk about plants in flower from specimens displayed on the flower table and share informaon about gardening topics. The Forum is followed by a delicious supper and an interesMng speaker. Old and new members, visitors and families, are very welcome at these Forums and on our ouMngs (see page 8 for details). Annual General Mee5ng is held in February. Sols5ce Func5on is held in June. This is usually a lunch and garden ramble at the home of one of our members. WaBle Day Ac5vity is held on a day closest to 1 September. Christmas Party is held early in December at the home of one of our members. We also lead regular trips into the bush and the occasional weekend escape to the coast or elsewhere. We parMcipate in St Peter’s Garden Tour in November each year, opening one of our gardens to the public and holding our Giant Annual Plant Sale. We hold a Market Stall each month in the Mall. Come along and say hello. Our members have also been acMve in developing and maintaining the Na5ve Garden beds at the Arboretum. We welcome volunteers who would like to help. See p.8 for details. ALL YOU NEED TO JOIN OUR GROUP IS AN INTEREST IN OUR NATIVE PLANTS Your President writes: an APS trip. On the way home we called in to look at the Famous last words! There I was thinking that I could Backwater Post Office - just a liRle larger than the hand over the reigns as President but no-one came average dunny out the back. Then John took us to look forward and it appears that you all have to put up with at the Chinese gold diggings on Oban Staon. It was a bit me at the helm for another year. Congratulaons to our of a hike across paddocks but worth it in the end. The new execuMve. One of our new members Dr Barry Chinese had diverted the river by creang a deep Tolchard stepped forward to take on Secretary. His channel through the granite by alternately heang and partner, Dr Cynthia Stuhlmiller will act as Assistant cooling the rock unMl it split. It was a marvel to behold. Secretary and Dr John Nevin is taking on Treasurer. The rest of the commiRee remains the same as before. The March Forum was well aended (23) and very interesMng. Phil TrickeR of the Nowra Group of APS told We had a wonderful February Forum. Suzanne us about his trials and tribulaons trying to gra West Robertson has been taking the specimens home each Australian Banksias onto eastern rootstock. The WA month and photographing them in large groups. She banksias are much admired but difficult to grow in printed out and laminated photos for each month heavier soils. They are very suscepMble to Phytophthora spanning three years and we turned it into a plant ID pathogens and would be more successful if they could game. Members worked in groups and had to sort the be grown on resistant rootstock. Phil has had some photos according to their relevant months then ID as success in the drier Canberra environment but since many as possible. This turned out to be quite a challenge moving to Milton has had to develop a set of new and members were deeply engaged trying to decide techniques for the more humid condiMons. what flowered when. Thank you Suzanne for a great effort. Phil and his wife Catriona visited a few of our gardens while in the district and we look forward to catching up About 14 members turned up at the Grand Hotel for the with them again at various APS funcMons. celebratory luncheon for John’s Life Membership. It was a very enjoyable event. John was presented with a The nights are geng cooler but the damp condiMons bunch of nave flowers from the members. conMnue. I have started to lose a few plants just lately which is leaving some holes that need to be filled. I We had a good turnout for the Backwater trip which I always work on the premise that a dead plant is a new have wriRen up in this newsleRer. Thanks you very opportunity. Anyone growing Australian plants needs to much Penelope and Eric Sinclair for hosMng us and be a bit philosophical; remember we are all horMcultural taking us around on the back of your truck. You never pioneers. know what you’re going to experience when you go on Maria APS NSW - Armidale & District Group Autumn 2012 Newsle=er page 2 Oung to Dumaresq Dam Text and images by John Nevin On 19th February, aer the cool, wet Summer, we resumed our field trips following the Christmas break with a visit to Dumaresq Dam. There were ten aendees, made up of Pat Laher, Thelma Dennis, Phil Rose, Ros and Brian Leslie, Glenda and Col Mulquiney, Maria Hitchcock and John and Barbara Nevin. Many of us had not been to the area for some years, and we were pleasantly surprised at what a pleasant spot the dam has evolved into. Historically, part of Armidale’s water supply, but long made redundant by Gara and Malpas Dams, it has been retained for its recreaonal use. The spot is well maintained by Council with extensive grassed areas, with picnic tables and chairs as well as Lythrum salicaria BBQ faciliMes. A commercial operaon offering kayaks for hire has recently been introduced. There would have the damper areas of the grassland. Along the eastern been about 50 people there enjoying themselves and side, we found a sizeable patch of Utricularia dichotoma about ten groups were camping, either in tents or with its single prominent petals, reminiscent of caravans. The recent wet weather has lec the dam full. Hybanthus monopetalus. This plant is an unusual one in The walking track was somewhat wet on the eastern that it is a carnivore and traps insects in small bladders side. Acer meeMng up we strolled around the periphery associated with its roots. of the dam on a walking track taking about an hour and a half, at a leisurely pace, to complete. Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) was pung on a great display at the water’s edge on the land side of the reed beds. I have found this plant to be quite hardy in the garden. It dies right back in the winter cold, but shoots again when the warm weather returns, pung on a great flowering display through the summer months.On the hillsides, Eucalyptus bridgesiana was a mass of white flowers, with the dull hum of the bees seeking the nectar that could readily be smelt. At the top of the body of water, some planMngs had been done years ago with grevilleas and wales, but most of the Utricularia dichotoma vegetaon was nave to the area.