Calendar
July
Sat 27 10am to 12 Noon walk to refuge Rock at Cherrybrook followed by a picnic lunch at The Lakes at Cherrybrook. Meet at Trevor’s Lane off Purchase road Cherrybrook.
Aug
Mon 12 Deadline for Calgaroo news and articles
Wed 13 Propagation at Bidjiwong Community Nursery 10am to 1 pm
Sat 24 Bimonthly meeting at Gumnut Hall, Gumnut Place Cherrybrook at 2pm with guest speaker TBA
Sat 31 Plant sale North Rocks Shopping Centre
SOME MEDICAL USES OF AUSTRALIAN NATIVE PLANTS
Early settlers on the whole were not willing to try Aboriginal treatments but preferred to try plants which reminded them of those they had known in Britain and other countries such as India and China.
One of the first plants used medicinally by the British immigrants was the Sydney Peppermint ( Eucalyptus piperita). The odour of its crushed leaves is vaguely pepperminty and probably reminded them of their own English peppermint Menthe piperita.
The person credited with being the first to discover the usefulness of Eucalyptus oil was Denis Considen, Surgeon of the First Fleet. He sent a sample to Joseph Banks in 1788. This initial promising result ushered in the next stage to look for medically useful plants.
Jennifer Farrer, local tour guide and APS member will discuss the medical use of other native Australian plants at the Parramatta Hills Group meeting on Saturday August 24 at
to be used as a medicine by European settlers.
Plants of the Newnes Plateau
by Ian Cox
From “Native Plants for New South Wales” newsletter of the Australian Plants Society (NSW), April 1996.
The area known as the Newnes Plateau is the habitat of many uncommon and unusual plants. This is a report on a Field Trip to the area led by Philip Moore in November 1995.
The Newnes Plateau, located north of Lithgow and Bell in the upper Blue Mountains, forms part of the Great Dividing Range. The southern portion of the Plateau is largely State Forest. To the north it includes parts of the new Gardens of Stone National Park and the wild Wollemi National Park.
The underlying rock is Narrabeen sandstone, which has been eroded by the Wolgan River in the west and other streams, leaving rugged ridges with rocky outcrops and deep gullies. The soil is generally poor and the weather harsh, with cold winters and hot summers. These conditions, where only the toughest plants can survive, have encouraged a flora with greater species diversity than in areas with more favourable circumstances.
Access to Newnes Plateau is via forest roads leading north from the Zig Zag tourist railway station at Clarence.
Refer 1:100000 topographical map “Wallerawang” or 1:25000 topographical maps “Lithgow” and “Cullen Bullen”.
We left our meeting place near the Zig Zag Railway Station first thing on Saturday morning 27th November 1995, and drove along the old Bells Line of Road. We didn’t have far to go to reach our first botanising stop – only a few hundred metres. It was a flat, open forested area with a good variety of species, which had regenerated well after a fire perhaps two or three years ago. Here we found the first of the multitude of Persoonia species we were to see over the weekend.
Persoonia recedens is a low spreading shrub which until recently was known as a subspecies of P.nutans. Its habitat is restricted to the upper Blue Mountains, as is that of P.myrtilloides ssp.myrtilloides, also nearby. Bordering the road were vibrant light-green carpets of P.chamaepitys – the flowers of which we inspected with a hand lens to view the distinctive hairy ovary. Phil identified another Persoonia here as closely resembling P.oxycoccoides, but this was probably an intergrade – the Flora of New South Wales lists the only habitat of that species as the Southern Highlands.
Boronia microphylla, flowering abundantly here, gave a softly colourful backdrop to the understorey. Its range of colours was from red to pale pink and even pure white. Phil explained that the white form of flower may be produced if only one enzyme is lacking during the chain of chemical reactions required for the plant to grow. This led to a discussion on the reasons for inaccurate colours of flowers in photography. Sometimes a photo of a blue Dampiera comes out almost pink. This is because the eye and the film collect different wavelengths of light.
Grevillea x gaudichaudii (left) is a naturally occurring hybrid between Grevillea acanthifolia (middle) and Grevillea laurifolia (right). G x gaudichaudii shows intermediate characteristics between the two parents, particularly in the foliage. The hybrid is found only in the upper Blue Mountains and can be quite variable in habit.
The heath form of Hakea dactyloides, with bronze- coloured new growth, was common here. Phil mentioned that this form (with lignotuber) was so different to the forest form that it should probably be given separate species status.
Proceeding down the road just past the sandmining operation, we admired an attractive stand of the inland form of Astrotricha longifolia in full bloom. These plants could take their place in any garden! Phil also pointed out an unusual form of Lomandra longifolia, with short leaves and flower stems and quite a sparse habit
The next stop was Murray’s Swamp. We came here to see several rare plants – the first, Boronia deanei, was flowering in a number of locations in and around the swamp. B.deanei is a nationally significant threatened species with a vulnerable classification. The second was Grevillea x gaudichaudii – the natural hybrid which was once thought to be a species. Here it was growing midway between its parents – G.acanthifolia in the swamp, and the ground- covering G.laurifolia on the drier bank. It was easy to see why both G.acanthifolia and G. x gaudichaudii would welcome a moist spot in the garden. A third rare plant we observed was Isopogon prostratus, its matted foliage hugging the ground amongst the pines.
flowering as it scrambles among taller grasses.
Growing in the swamp with its blue-violet racemes was Derwentia blakelyi. This plant, until recently classified as a Parahebe, also has a restricted distribution. A white form of Stylidium graminifolium is also found here.
Reflecting the altitude of almost 1,000 metres, Celmisia longifolia (Snow Daisy), and Eucalyptus pauciflora (Snow Gum) grow around Murray’s Swamp, both being close to the northern extremity of their range. The Celmisia genus is currently under review, and this particular Celmisia, although at present included in the longifolia species complex, could well be reclassified as a separate species during the review.
The vegetation in Murray’s Swamp is rather low – nothing is much over a metre high. It was a sea of pastel colours – the delicate green hues of the grasses, sedges and other plants harmonised with the pink of the boronias and grevilleas and the white of Epacris and Conospermum – a vista extending over several hectares flanked by the pines. Unfortunately this unique plant community is not protected, being in State ForestContinuing along the Glow-worm Tunnel road, we stopped to explore a dry rocky area with large sandstone pagoda formations. Here in exposed pockets of the pagodas was Leucochrysum graminifolium (formerly named Helipterum albicans variety graminifolium). This delightful herb with pale yellow flower heads and grasslike leaves is endemic to Newnes Plateau. – it is never located away from the rocks. Here too was a distinctive form of Calytrix tetragona, widespread on the Newnes Plateau, with yellow buds and creamy- white flowers.
Nearby, complimenting the stark and striking beauty of the pagodas, were many Callitris trees. In the Sydney region there are three species of Callitris – C.endlicheri, C.muelleri a n d C.rhomboidea, and all three are found in the more exposed and rocky parts of the Plateau.
The Newnes Plateau is the home of a number of uncommon banksias. Banksia penicillata is endemic in a few restricted populations and does well in cultivation in Sydney. Hybrids with B.marginata occur at a couple of locations near here.
Also found in the area is a hybrid between B.ericifolia and B.cunninghamii. Of the very few Banksia hybrids in the wild throughout Australia, two exist on the Plateau! B.paludosa, which is allied to B.penicillata, is also on the Plateau near the northern limit of its distribution.
Just before the first road tunnel we stopped and scrambled down a rocky bank. In a creek bed we found a sparse Prostanthera around 70 centimetres tall. Phil identified it as having affinity with Prostanthera rhombea, although it should probably be a separate species.
Proceeding down the track, we came to a vertical rockface dripping with water, from which hung branches of the white- flowered Epacris muelleri, found only in the upper Blue Mountains. We were also attracted to the pink goodenia-like flowers of Coopernookia barbata, which is uncommon in the Sydney region.
Alongside the track Phil showed us a Pultenaea which during a previous visit he was unable to key out to a described species. What was it? Harry volunteered to seek an answer from the herbarium in Sydney. The answer came back later from Peter Weston – an unnamed species related to Pultenaea glabra!
At the entrance to the glow-worm tunnel was a sign reading:
Give the worms a go – keep the lights and noise low
We obediently complied as we entered the dark and damp of the old railway tunnel. Once our eyes adjusted, the worms rewarded us with a glittering display on the ceiling and walls.
We emerged from the far end of the tunnel into a different world. Here it was cool and green – we were in the midst of a forest of treeferns. Large and stately specimens of Dicksonia antarctica and Cyathea australis towered over Todea barbara and Blechnum nudum. The ferns continued along the track for several hundred metres as it followed the creek.
We camped overnight in the bush a short distance along Blackfellows Hand Trail, surrounded by a “garden” of Boronia microphylla and Dampiera stricta. On Sunday morning we continued west along Sunnyside Ridge Trail and turned north onto No 7 Fire Trail towards Wolgan Pinnacle. The trail ended on a finger of rock which juts out high above the Wolgan Valley. The view was magnificent. To the east the pagoda rock formations extended to the horizon on a series of ridges. “The Gardens of Stone” is certainly an apt name for this National Park.
It forms an eye-catching carpet of deep blue flowers.
We had a quick lunch, eager to explore this isolated place. Here again was the yellow/white Calytrix. Around the base of the pagodas was a low mint bush in flower – an unnamed variety of Prostanthera saxicola. The little Leucochrysum graminifolium was here too, brightening up the rocky pockets. Zieria aspalathoides and Z.cytisoides were not far away.
We scrambled around the pagodas towards the northern end of the ridge. After perhaps two or three hundred metres we came to a shallow gully containing a small forest of acacias – tall and slender – about 15 metres tall – with all the branches in the top three or four metres. The brown bark was flaky, of the “mini richi” type, and the phyllodes pale green and falcate. This was a new species, Acacia mathewii, whose description did not make the Flora of NSW. In the next little gully was Boronia rupii, similar in appearance to B.ledifolia, but having leaves with from three to seven leaflets.
The Newnes Plateau is shrouded in an aurora of mystery for native plant lovers. It is a place where you expect the unexpected. As usual we left convinced that there must be more unknown species awaiting discovery here. Who could disagree? After all, the “Wollemi Pine” is only tens of kilometres away!
30 Sep 2019 2019 ANPSA National Biennial Conference, ‘Blooming Biodiversity’ at Albany WA
(NSW school holidays)
Hosted by the Wildflower Society of Western Australia from 30 September to 4 October.
Register at the website now so that you can be kept up-to-date on developments:
http://www.wildflowersocietywa.org.au/anpsa/
Contact John Arney: 0418 607 685
How I discovered the Dalveen Blue Box, a rare eucalypt species with a sweet, fruity smell
Tim Collins, May 24, 2019
In 2002, I went on a bushwalk with plant taxonomist David Albrecht, and had a big surprise. He pointed to a plant I thought I knew, and said: “that’s probably a new species.”
A new species? How could it be that this plant had not already been scientifically described and named?
I was in for another surprise when I learnt there are estimated to be thousands of undescribed plant species in Australia. But just because one botanist says a plant is a new species, it doesn’t mean that everyone else automatically agrees.
As a researcher, I had the opportunity to study one of Australia’s most iconic plant groups – the eucalypts.
Herbarium records of an endagered eucalyptus species, the Northern Blue Box (Eucalyptus magnificata), showed populations from the Northern Tablelands in New South Wales scattered up to the Granite Belt in southern Queensland.
But on closer inspection, I discovered there were different ecosystems between populations. E. magnificata, for instance, is found on rims of gorges in Oxley Wild Rivers
National Park, whereas E. baueriana is typically found on riverbanks and flood plains.
The question I wanted answered was: are all these populations really E. magnificata or have some been
misidentified and represent other common species? Or, alternatively, are they new, undescribed rarer species?
So when my supervisors, Professor Jeremy Bruhl and Dr Rose Andrew, and I visited the mystery trees near Dalveen in southern Queensland, we knew immediately they were something exciting. They just looked different to everything else we’d seen.
Eucalyptus that smells sweet and fruity
To find out, I’d been sampling eucalyptus ( collecting , pressing and drying specimens) and had spent the past two days with my supervisors. With our heads craned back, we stared through binoculars to search the tree canopy at dozens of sites on the Northern Tablelands looking for the buds and fruits that enable eucalypt identification.
Not only did these trees at Dalveen look unlike anything else we’d seen on the trip, they also had a different smell. When we crushed a leaf, the aroma was sweet, mild and fruity, quite unlike the familiar eucalyptus oil.
Back at the university, I could compare the different collections. I examined and recorded differences in the size and shapes of the leaves, buds and fruits. I grew seedlings of my field collections and saw that seedling leaves were also consistently different.
And I extracted the mixture of aromatic chemicals in the leaf oils collected during fieldwork. Then, I used a chemistry laboratory technique, called Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry, to compare their concentrations with closely related species, such as E. baueriana and E. polyanthemos.
The results clearly explained why the leaves had a unique scent. That sweet and fruity aroma was due to larger molecules, called sesquiterpenes, which dominated the leaf-oil. There were only traces of the familiar-smelling cineole molecule common to most eucalypts.
A new species, or just an uninhibited sex romp?
Sequencing the DNA of the tree added another piece to the puzzle.
We had collected samples from all of the closely related common species. We had strong evidence from the shape of the leaves, fruits and flower buds suggesting the Dalveen trees were different. But the possibility remained that they were just hybrids.
Eucalyptus trees can be wickedly promiscuous and hybrid trees with similar characteristics are common. In some parts of eastern Australia, for instance, eucalypts naturally form hybrid swarms, the botanical equivalent of a wildly uninhibited sex romp!
But the DNA told us the trees from Dalveen were genetically distinct, and with no suggestion of shared ancestry.
Now, with three very different data sets all supporting the same conclusion, it became imperative we publish our findings and describe the new species, which we named Eucalyptus dalveenica, or the Dalveen Blue Box. New species have to be named using a universal and internationally accepted naming system. Names and descriptions must be published, and a pressed and dried specimen must be nominated to be the representative that other collections can be compared to. Most importantly, convincing evidence must be presented that persuades the botanical community the newly named species should be accepted. But naming a new species is only the first step in knowing what it is. Importantly, naming tells us what it isn’t. The trees at Dalveen are not Eucalyptus magnificata, nor do they belong to another more common species, E. baueriana or E. conica.
Eucalyptus dalveenica is a rare and endangered part of Australia’s natural heritage . Taxonomic description of new specie s (classifying, describing and naming) provides the framework for ongoing accurate identification, species conservation and further study.We are fortunate to live in a beautiful part of the world, with diverse and unique wildlife. Describing biodiversity a n d communicating new discoveries develops connections between people and their local environment, leading to a broader understanding of our home.
From The Conversation, Beating Around the Bush theconversation.com
BUSHWALK SATURDAY 27 JULY AT 10 AM to 12 noon
Where: Refuge Rock walk Cherry brook
Distance: 2.3km
Track Status: Fire trails and rough bush tracks. No steep hills
Meeting Place: Trevors Lane off Purchase Road Cherrybrook
Refuge Rock is an outcrop of several hectares largely free of vegetation. This natural feature came to be used by as a safe haven by fire fighters carrying out control burns. At the edge of the rock there is a dramatic drop off into Pye’s Creek. There are lots of sandstone vegetation to be seen along the fire trails. It is very hard to predict what will be flowering but it is reasonable to expect Banksias, Woollsia, Pultenaea, Cryptandra, Bossiaea, Leucopogon and Boronias to be in flower.
As there are no picnic spots on the walk we will adjourn for a picnic lunch afterwards at Cherrybrook Lakes.
Isopogon scabriusculus
This species is not common in the Esperance region and is only found in mallee heathland to the northwest; the above occurring in a sandy loam over gravel around 130 km from Esperance. It is however, much more abundant further west, extending to Lake King, Hyden, Southern Cross and the Frank Hann National Park.
There are two other subspecies, neither known to occur in the Esperance region, but they do overlap with this subspecies elsewhere. This subspecies is easily separated from the others by having hairs on the outside of the flowers, whereas the others (subsp. stenophyllus and subsp. scabriusculus) are without external floral hairs and differ from each other by the shape of their leaves.
Locally, Isopogon scabriusculus subsp. pubifloris is an open upright shrub to 1.2 metres (4’) in height, with minutely scabrous (fine sandpaper-like surface) terete leaves (rounded in cross-section) to 13 cm (5”) in length. The pink, purple and red flowers are mostly grouped at the summit of the previous years growth, to later produce a globular cone (over 1 cm or ½” diameter), which disintegrates after fire to release the seed.
Flowering is recorded from August to December, although this would depend on seasonal rainfall with the above starting late September to probably finish by November.
Isopogon is another ornamental genus of the large and diverse Proteaceae family. Plants within this genus are common known as Cone-flowers or Drumsticks.
Graptophyllum ilicifolium
The recent edition of Australian Plants, featured articles about Rainforest. One of the articles by Lawrie Smith, “Fifty shades of green- the magic of rainforest” included photos of his selection of the most rewarding rainforest plants to grow. Amongst them was Graptophyllum ilicifolium.
I have had this plant growing in my garden for more than 20 years and it is indeed rewarding. It is native to dry rainforest from Mackay to Rockhampton. It is often found in rocky areas or along dry creek banks. It prefers excellent drainage and part shade. Mine is growing where it gets the afternoon sun.
The foliage is stiff and prickly like holly, in fact ilicifoilum means leaves like holly. The flowers are large and tubular and an attractive deep fuchsia pink. The flowers appear between August and November and are attractive to nectar feeding birds.
We have grown plants at the Community Nursery from cuttings and there are some available for anyone who would like to try one.
Another plant which has been grown successfully at the nursery recently is the West Australian Woollybush, Adenanthos sericeus. This was featured in an article by John Knight in the recent edition of Native Plants. This plant grown in a pot has become popular as a Christmas Tree.
Jennifer Farrer
Parramatta and Hills District Group
SECRETARY: Caroline Franks
Email: apsparrahills@gmail.com