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Travel clockwise around the Garden on the
white gravel loop road with these notes.
Click on the hyperlink to see
an image of the plant.
There are also separate brochures for
the Old Eucalypt Way, the Acacia Walk and Honey Eater Walk if you can take the
time to explore further. The Garden map includes suggestions of special plants to look for.
If you have a cuppa with you, then take it and
wander around the gallery area on foot. Behind the gallery is Cassia
brewsteri dripping with flowers in unusual red and orange and green colour combinations.
In front of the gallery are several of the little known 'Merinda Gordon'
grevilleas with the holly like leaves. Also a tiny Graptophyllum
excelsum with more
flowers than leaves. Several Robyn and Sandra Gordon plants are nearby. Late
afternoon you may catch a quiet wallaby browsing nearby.
Walk towards the high tank to see examples of
hybrid grevilleas, many of these are grown in home gardens. These are regularly
pruned to give new growth and flowers, whereas the species grevilleas in the
rest of the Garden are not pruned at all, but are left, as they would be in
nature. Near the little shed you can see a local species of orchid, Cymbidium
canaliculatum in
full flower. Continue by car, clockwise around the Garden on the loop road.
Melaleucas are the main flower in the
Garden
at the moment. They are scattered all through the Garden. Many are covered with
bees and insects with the nectar eating birds flitting round working them. Park
at the different car parks and look about. Also a few eremophilas may still be
found in flower. These bushes are quite insignificant the rest of the year but
become stunning when in flower. The red flowering bottlebrushes are Callistemon
phoeniceus and are nearly finished in the heat.
The row of Eucalyptus salubris on the outside
of the loop road is always worth a stop as the glorious colours of the bark are
ever changing with the light - I like to give one a hug and a stroke.
Beside the Bendee picnic table is Melaleuca
calothamnoides with flowers that change from green yellow to orange. Also M
coccinea (soft pink) and M oldfieldii (deep mauve) Here too are the baby grass
trees. Check out the soft velvet growth on the ground Banksias. There are more
of them further up in the Garden.
Banksia ashbyi, normally a winter flowerer, is
still flowering well and is worth a close up photo. And Eucalyptus grossa
with
its chunky buds and branch distortions is a study in character. Aptly named?
Maybe it is in flower? They are almost green in colour.
The top end of the Garden in the Western Walk
has a selection of grevilleas and the brilliant red bottlebrush flowers of the
Kunzea pulchella. Look for Grevillea
disjuncta, insignis and georgeana in
flower, and smell the honey on the white flowered grevilleas. Do stop and park
at the bus turnaround and walk around to get the best value here. Sturt's
Desert Rose with its morning mauve flowers does not mind the heat too much.
Also lining the road edge are the wondrous
ground banksias with vigorous flower spikes on outside edge. Banksia
blechnifolia is at its best ever. So soft and furry. Don't damage them please.
A strange smell has been reported from them - like hot meat pies! The dead
grevillea nearby is a haven for many small finches. Likewise for the Grevillea
tetragonoloba further along.
Tucked in around the corner is a row of mature
Eucalyptus stricklandii that has a mass of buds – are any open yet? Behind
these, the perfumed Grevillea obliquistigma that
has naturalised, gives good
habitat protection for many birds. If you are interested in birds, we have a
comprehensive
list of birds observed in the Garden available here
or from the gallery.
The Gordon grevilleas are more obvious now
that they have been cleared in front of them, with new plantings of Robyn and
Sandra Gordon. Check the signage for the parents and try to find these plants.
The Grevillea whiteana around the large sign may still have masses of large
white spikes. Behind the grevilleas are more Cassia
brewsteri. Look for the Hakea
ivoryi further along, with its fissured corky bark.
Calothamnus
are known as the one sided
bottlebrush and the genus comes from West Australia. There are a number of red
flowered forms in the Garden, flowering well at the moment. See if you can
identify some?
The Gumnut Walk has a selection of eucalypts
with many different shaped buds and seed capsules. The mature shape of eucalypt
canopies varies widely - look around at the various tree shapes you can see
here. The barks are very different too. More Melaleucas here too. Melaleuca
spicigera has flowers.
On the outside of the loop road near the ghost
gum is Melaleuca cordata with heart shaped grey leaves around the stem. At Honey
Eater Walk the Grevilleas to look for are the round bush of Grevillea
thelemanniana, and G kennedyana with its grey leaves, only looks like it is
dying. Back behind these is the spiky Dryandra arborea with lemon coloured
flowers on the ends of branches.
Further along in this region is the spotted
bark of the Flindersia maculosa. See the sprawling plants at the base
- is this the form of the new trees? Nearby, the Melaleuca filifolia clump may still
have some flowers.
This garden is a natural bush garden, with
many botanic labels on plants, but we like to think that there is opportunity
for photographers to take photos in which labels and signage are not too
intrusive. Do look at the overall landscape and tree line for the true beauty of
Australian plants.
Many more will burst into colour, so do
mention any more that you see and they can be added to the list for others to
enjoy.
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