June 2016


Volume 43, No 6

Botanical Art, An Australian Perspective

Most of us enjoy botanical art, if for no other reason, because we love to see drawings and paintings of our Australian flora. Jann Mulholland who is a botanical artist, is to show us just what is involved in depicting our plants at our next meeting at Gumnut Hall, Gumnut Place, Cherrybrook, on Saturday, 25th June, 2016, at 2pm.

Two examples of Jann Mulholland’s work.

Sturt Desert Pea (Swainsona formosa)
Native Frangipani (Hymenosporum flavum)

Please bring some paper or a sketch book, a soft pencil 3B+, if you are like me, a soft eraser, and a leaf or two or three. We will work on the tables in the Hall.

If you can draw a leaf imagine future possibilities.


Our Bush Walk on 28 May 2016

Pip Gibian

Saturday 28th unfortunately dawned cold and drizzly. The only two members to appear at Fred Caterson Reserve were Jennifer and Pip.

The drizzle stopped soon after 10am and we went for a short walk. The Baulkham Hills Council was given a sizeable grant to regenerate this part of Cattai Creek running close to Playing Field no 4. A row of appropriate native buffer plants had been planted in the past and were now well developed. The privet-infested creek line has been well weeded, with almost no privet to be seen in the immediate area. Patches of dead weeds provided evidence that selective follow-up spraying was being done. Grass has covered most of the bare earth and lomandras were everywhere to be seen. Other regeneration plants were appearing. This is a wonderful example of what can be done with the will and the finances to do it. In the bush back from the creek banks there is a wide, interesting variety of local bush plants. One enormous grandfather of a Scribbly gum is full of nesting hollows in the broken old branches, a veritable hotel according to Jennifer. There are also some plants of Epacris purpurascens, an endangered species, found almost only in Baulkham Hills Shire. Our walk was followed up by a good chat in the coffee shop at Knightsbridge.

Ed. Our thanks to Jennifer for offering to lead the walk. Our commisserations with those for whom the weather conditions were unsettling – you missed a great opportunity to see what can be done.


Calendar

Jun 2016
Wed 8 Propagation at Bidjiwong Community Nursery at 10am
Sat 25 Our meeting at Gumnut Hall at 2pm – speaker Jann Mulholland – Botanical Art – an Australian Perspective

Jul 2016
Wed 6 Deadline for Calgaroo news / articles
Wed 13 Propagation at Bidjiwong Community Nursery at 10am
Sat 23 Tour of the Seed Bank, Australian Botanic Gardens, Mount Annan at 11am


APS NSW 2016 Get-together Tamworth 19-21 August 2016

Tamworth APS members are looking forward to hosting the 2016 NSW Get-Together with a full-on Seminar, dinner and a range of local activities to take part in.

The President’s annual dinner will be held for Group Presidents and Secretaries on Friday evening. Six speakers will enlighten you at the Seminar on Saturday:

  • After the President’s welcome, Aboriginal Elder, Leonard Waters will Welcome you to Country and talk about the Plants that are of significance to the Kamilaroi People.
  • Hydrogeologist and APS member Martin O’Rourke will talk about why drought – or rather low rainfall – is normal for Australia. Rainfall: There is Nothing Average About the Average.
  • Botanist Warren Sheather, well known to APS members, will outline the advantages of growing plants close together using a wide range of species. Density and Diversity.
  • Anthony and Annabelle O’Halloran of Bilby Blooms left Canberra to start a Wildflower Farm, now after 16 years they tell us what they have they learnt, Been Away to Grow Wildflowers. And you can join Anthony and Annabelle for a tag-a-long to the Pillaga on Sunday afternoon.
  • Phil Spark from North West Ecological Services will discuss the management issues for Travelling Stock Routes. He will talk about Conservation Values of Travelling Stock Routes.
  • After lunch visit the DPI’s Native Agro Forestry Trial planted in 1996 with the purpose of determining the suitability of native species for timber production in an area of low rainfall, and the Grassy Yellow Box Woodland, one of the few remnants of Yellow Box Woodland surviving in the Tamworth area.
  • Then enjoy afternoon tea at a nearby award-winning native garden created by another of our APS members.
  • On Sunday, enjoy Breakfast with the Birds courtesy of the Tamworth Bird Watchers at the Tamworth Regional Botanic Gardens and afterwards, view the nearby Rare and Threatened Species Garden established by the Tamworth Group lead by the late Bill Hardin who was recipient of an APS 2015 Conservation Award.
  • Carr’s Park Garden, a 5 acre property in a semi-rural area of Tamworth established by one of our APS members will be open for viewing. It is planted with a wide range of eucalypts and in addition features acacias, grevilleas, eremophilas, hakeas and macadamia cultivars.
  • Visit Peel Wetlands. Sited at the conjunction of storm water outlets, the area was a bare flat horse paddock in 1995. Now the wetlands play a vital role in wildlife conservation, filtering sediments, chemicals and rubbish from the storm water run-off and supporting a diversity of flourishing plants.

To Register for the Get-Together, complete the registration form in the April issue of Native Plants for New South Wales by Friday, 5 Aug 2016, or contact Lee Esdaile at pjltesdaile@gmail.com Payment should be made at the time of registration. Attendance at the Saturday Seminar will cost $30 per head and at the Dinner on Saturday night $48 per head. See Native Plants for NSW, pages 18 – 21 for details.


GardenDrum

Keep an eye on GardenDrum, in this case to read an article by well known APS NSW member, Brian Roach.

Brian writes, “On a recent trip out through Broken Hill to the Flinders Ranges I could only look in awe at the great swathes of blue-bush, Mariana oppositifolia and M.sedifolia that adorned the hot and often rugged countryside. Obviously these plants are wonderfully adapted to a hostile landscape where water is scarce and sunshine plentiful.”

See his images at http://gardendrum.com/2016/05/30/amazing-greys/


Landmark Paris Deal on Climate Change Signed by 175 Nations

*David Twomey

The historic United Nations sponsored Paris Agreement on climate change has marked a major milestone with a record 175 countries signing up to it on opening day at UN headquarters in New York. However, world leaders made clear more action was needed, and quickly, to fight a relentless rise in global temperatures.

With the planet heating up to record levels, sea levels rising and glaciers melting, the pressure to have the Paris Agreement enter into force and to have every country turn its words into deeds was palpable at the UN signing ceremony. “The world is in a race against time,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in his opening speech. “The era of consumption without consequences is over.” “Today you are signing a new covenant with the future. This covenant must amount to more than promises,” he said.

The agreement will enter into force once 55 countries representing at least 55 per cent of global emissions have formally joined it, a process initially expected to take until 2020. However, following a host of announcements at the signing event, observers now think it could happen later this year, and certainly by some time next year.

China, the world’s top carbon emitter, announced it would “finalise domestic procedures” to ratify the agreement before the G-20 summit in China in September.

The United States, the world’s second-largest emitter, reiterated its intention to ratify this year, as did Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the leaders of Mexico and Australia.

Maros Sefcovic, the energy chief for another top emitter, the 28-nation European Union, has also said the EU wants to be in the “first wave” of ratifying countries.

Congo’s President Joseph Kabila, speaking on behalf of the world’s 48 least-developed countries, said all were committed to “to move in one irreversible direction to secure a safer climate.” Even though small emitters, he said they would take the steps required to ratify the agreement “as soon as possible,” a reflection of the wide reach of the agreement.

The Washington-based World Resources Institute said that at least 25 countries representing 45 per cent of global emissions had either joined the agreement or committed to joining it early.

French President Francois Hollande, the first to sign in recognition of his key role in achieving the December agreement, said he would ask parliament to ratify it by this summer. “There is no turning back now,” President Hollande told the gathering, adding that a key to success in combating climate change will be to get governments, companies, and people all over the world to work together to move from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

US Secretary of State Kerry said the signing of the agreement had to be followed by a recommitment by world leaders to actually win the “war” against carbon emissions that are making the world hotter every year. Putting the deal into economic terms, he said, “the power of this agreement is what it is going to do to unleash the private sector” to define the new energy of the future and set the global economy on a new path to growth and development that preserves the environment.

Academy Award-winning actor Leonardo Dicaprio, a UN messenger of peace and climate activist, captured the feelings of many when he said: “We can congratulate each other today, but it will mean absolutely nothing if the world’s leaders gathered here go home and do nothing.” “No more talk, no more excuses, no more 10-year studies,” he told the VIPs. “The world is now watching. You will either be lauded by future generations or vilified by them.”

After he spoke, leaders and diplomats from the 175 countries were called to the front of the chamber to sign the agreement.

Mr Kerry carried his granddaughter in his arms, a symbol of the future generations the agreement is aimed at protecting.

The signing set a record for international diplomacy: never have so many countries signed an agreement on the first available day. Those who have not signed have a year to do so. The ceremony, held on Earth Day, brought together a wide range of states that might sharply disagree on other issues.

Prime Minister Enele Sosene Sopoaga of Tuvalu, which has seen four of its small islands disappear into the Pacific Ocean since 2000, said the agreement could change the world, but islands on the frontline of climate change urgently needed better access to financing to protect themselves against rising oceans. Tuvalu was one of 15 nations that not only signed but ratified the agreement.

The Paris Agreement was a major breakthrough in UN climate negotiations, which for years were slowed by disputes between rich and poor countries over who should do what. Under the agreement, countries set their own targets for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The targets are not legally binding, but countries must update them every five years.

Already, states face pressure to do more as scientific analyses show the initial set of targets that countries pledged before Paris do not match the agreement’s long-term goal to keep global warming below two degrees Celsius, compared with pre-industrial times. Global average temperatures have already climbed by almost 1.0°C, and last year was the hottest on record. The latest analysis by the Climate Interactive research group shows the Paris pledges put the world on track for 3.5°C of warming.

*David Twomey is a journalist with Econews which may be seen at http://econews.com.au/ each day.

Ed. I suggest that this report dated 25 April, 2016 may be one of the most important records this world has ever seen. I experienced a day in Adelaide on 12 January 1939 when the temperature reached 117.7ºF (47.6°C), surpassing the old record of 116.3°F in 1858, so I appreciate some may consider we are just experiencing a hot cycle that will cool again. But I respect the view of a substantial majority of scientists who warn of disastrous climate change if we do nothing. Not only may we humans suffer but our flora will too. They can’t benefit from an air conditioner.


The Pincushion Hakea – Hakea laurina

Hakea laurina (Pincushion Hakea) Image: snaplant.com

Ed. I read the APS East Hills Group’s May newsletter with interest. In particular, a report on a short talk by David Crawford, a local member and the Editor of Native Plants for NSW, on the Hakea laurina caught my eye. I had grown this Hakea for over 20 years at Castle Hill and it reached about 5m in height. Here was David telling me there is a dwarf form – I wish I knew this long ago for I would have certainly bought one. But let us read Editor, Jan Douglas’ report.

“David Crawford gave a presentation that he and Jan Douglas had prepared on the Pincushion Hakea, Hakea laurina. The usual form of this Hakea is a shrub or small tree to 6m which can be pruned to a bushy shape or hedge. There is also a dwarf form to 0.5m. Its natural distribution is in the far south of Western Australia, but it is commonly cultivated in many States. It may suffer root rot in damp situations. The main feature is the amazing flowers which attract insects, but the woody fruits are also attractive. The leaves are simple, with longitudinal veins. The species was named by Robert Brown in 1830.

Laurina means ‘like a laurel’ (i.e. bay tree)”.

Ed. As this is a plant from WA, excellent drainage and a breeze way are desirable. I apologise for being unable to allocate the space for a series of seven images showing the development of flower and fruit prepared by Jan Douglas but that above demonstrates the desirability of this Hakea. Visit the APS NSW web site at http://austplants.com.au/ , click on District Group newsletters and then East Hills Group’s May issue to see Jan’s images.


Forward Planning

Hamilton and Warnnambool & District Groups of APS Victoria have joined forces to present the next Fred Rogers Seminar at Hamilton, Victoria, on 8 October 2016 on the subject of Terrestrial and Epiphytic Orchids.

11th Australian Plant Conservation Conference in Melbourne 15 -18 Nov 2016

Further details are to be made known soon. Keep informed by visiting www.anpc.asn.au/conferences/2016

The APS NSW 2016 Get-together will be held in Tamworth on 19 – 20 August 2016

2016 Wildflower Art and Garden Festival will be held on Sunday, 28 August, at Ku-ring-gai Wildflower Garden, Mona Vale Road, St Ives.


Garden Design – A Starting point

Diana Snape

Ed. It has occurred to me that it is a long time since we included an article directed towards new members in particular and those who have decided to revamp a long established garden. And so where do we start? Surely design of your garden is at least a good option.

The following is a copy of a paper by long time former leader of the Garden Design Study Group, Diana Snape, which was first published in the Study Group’s newsletter of November 1997.

Diana begins, “I was asked by Helen Moody for some suggestions for designing with Australian plants, to be included in an article she was writing for the Sydney Morning Herald (4/9/97). In her article Helen says “The most distinctive quality of Australian plants and native gardens is that they impart a spirit of place that is uniquely ours. They create a feel, a sense, a smell and a sound of their own.””

Here are those idea as I wrote them….

  1. A garden is an artistic creation which evolves through time and is never ‘finished’; gardeners are artists who follow their own vision and those of us who love Australian plants can gain inspiration directly from aspects of the Australian landscape.
  2. Plants which occur naturally in the same environment – desert, for example, or coastal – usually look happy together in the garden because of their complementary adaptations as well as their similar requirements.
  3. Sculptural Australian plants, like tree ferns, grasstrees, Gymea lilies and banksias, will distinguish a garden and deserve to be treated with respect and placed carefully in a garden landscape.
  4. Three or four different species of the numerous Australian groundcover plants – daisies, hibbertias (guinea flowers), scaevolas (fan flowers), etc.- can be chosen and repeated to create a lovely tapestry effect at ground level.
  5. Even in a small garden, a tree of the appropriate size such as one of the smaller eucalypts extends the space of the garden upwards, acting as a focal point as well as being a magnet for birds.
  6. Don’t just look at the shapes of the plants in a garden, look also at the shapes of the spaces between plants; the balance of ‘mass’ and ‘void’ should be satisfying.
  7. Australian daisies and grasses combine nicely with rocks – a pleasing contrast of soft and hard textures, with clumped or sprawling daisies and tufted grasses complementing the definite curved or straight lines of rocks.
  8. A huge variety of fine foliaged tufted Australian plants look excellent beside water – rushes, sedges and lilies,either upright or weeping. There are shrubs and small trees too with weeping foliage which is very appealing when reflected in water.
  9. A sympathetic formal touch – a well made stone wall, paving of appropriate colour and outline, or sculpture -Hoffman Walk, Victoria with the white trunks of Eucalyptus scoparia standing above the low, silver-white cushion bush (Leucophyta brownii).Photo: Diana Snapecan bring solidity to the fine foliage of many Australian plants.
  10. Australian rainforest plants continue to gain popularity because of their colourful new foliage, flowers and fruit; with glossy green leaves of medium size they blend well with exotic plants.
  11. There are many small-leaved Australian plants (eg. lilly pillies, melaleucas, leptospermums, westringias) which can be pruned and treated formally for hedges or even topiary, to be used for example as a focal point among less formal shrubs.
  12. From the variety of Australian shrubs now available, such as the range of beautiful grevilleas, it ispossible to create wonderful massed or layered garden beds with colour schemes which can be vivid or subtle. Remember to tip prune.
  13. The rapid growth of some large shrubs or small trees, in particular some acacias, is of benefit in planting for succession – it enables them lo be used as ‘nurse’ plants for a screen and for shelter while slower growing plants are being established.
  14. A garden of low shrubs (a metre or less, pruned if necessary to maintain this height) gives an open and spacious feel to the garden while several small eucalypts with fine trunks could provide a vertical element.
  15. The variety of foliage of Australian plants is amazing, in form texture, colour – from large and dramatic to tiny, delicate leaves – and many attractive effects can be achieved with foliage alone.

Ed. Like several other Study Groups the Garden Design Study Group newsletters appear in the Study Group section of the Australian Native Plants Society (Australia) web site some time after members have received them. Visit http://anpsa.org.au/design/index.html and check out stories and advice on garden design. And should you decided to join this Study Group write or email the leader Ben Walcott at 10 Wickham Crescent, Red Hill, ACT 2603 or visit bwalcott@netspeed.com.au The annual membership fee is $6 including four newsletters via email and $15 for newsletters via post.


What about a Small to Medium Melaleuca

Several small to medium Melaleucas are very colourful and reasonably hardy in our Sydney gardens.

Melaleuca thymifolia Image: Brian Walters
Melaleuca diosmatifolia Image: Brian Walters
Melaleuca fulgens Image: Brian Walters

M. thymifolia is one of the most widely cultivated members of the genus and is well established in general horticulture. It is endemic to the east coast of NSW and southern Queensland extending about 200km inland.

Several colour forms have been bred as cultivars including M. ‘White Lace” and M. ‘Pink Lace’. Propagation is easy from both seed and cuttings. It prefers a sunny position but accepts some shade. Good drainage is an advantage but it will tolerate less than perfect drainage.

The species responds to annual fertilising after flowering and to an annual light pruning to encourage a bushy shape.

M. diosmatifolia is another hardy species which can be grown in a wide range of climates. It grows along the east coast in much the same area as M. thymifolia. It can reach about 3m but is generally found less than 1.5m high. It prefers moist soils and can be grown in soils which are less than perfectly drained. It prefers a sunny, open position but will also grow in light shade. It is tolerant of at least moderate frost

The species also responds to annual fertilising after flowering and to an annual light pruning to encourage a bushy shape. Propagation is easy from both seed and cuttings.

M. fulgens is another to consider for a small garden. Unlike the other two this Melaleuca is endemic to an area in WA but has proven hardy under our conditions. It may reach 3m but is usually smaller. It does require reasonably well drained soils and a sunny position. Purple flowered forms are now understood to be hybrids of M. fulgens. Normally the species flowers bright red but there is a salmon coloured form.

This species also responds to fertilising and pruning as the other two do and propagation is also easy either way.


Other Starters – What about a Tea Tree?

One of the less difficult plants may be your choice of a Leptospermum, a TeaTree. Leptospermum is a genus of about 83 species, all but three occurring in Australia. They are commonly known as ‘tea trees’ due to the practice of early European settlers using the leaves of some species as a tea substitute.

In recent years there has been a spate of cultivars appear. Leptospermum ‘Aphrodite’ is one of a number of colourful cultivars developed at Bywong Nursery at Bungendore, NSW. It apparently arose in a batch of seedlings of Leptospermum spectabile. L. ‘Aphrodite’ is a medium shrub which grows about 2 – 2.5m high with narrow, lance-shaped leaves to about 15mm long. The 5-petalled, pink flowers are larger than is typical for the genus being about 20 mm diameter with numerous small stamens surrounding the central stigma. The flowers have a green centre and are followed by woody fruits containing many seeds; the fruits remain unopened until they are removed from the plant or the plant dies. Plants are generally hardy and prefer full sun or partial shade and may be pruned severely if necessary.

Leptospermum ‘Aphrodite’
Image: Peter Ollerenshaw
Leptospermum ‘Merinda’
Image: Brian Walters
Leptospermum ‘Tickled Pink’
Image: Peter Ollerenshaw
Leptospermum ‘Outrageous’
Image: Peter Ollerenshaw

Leptospermum ‘Merinda’ is another cultivar developed by Bywong Nursery. It is a hybrid between L. ‘Pink Cascade’ and L. ‘Aphrodite’. L. ‘Merinda’ is a small shrub which grows to about 1m high with an arching habit of growth. It has narrow, lance-shaped leaves to about 12 mm long, tapering to a point. The 5-petalled, magenta flowers are larger than is typical for the genus being about 15 mm diameter with numerous small stamens surrounding the central stigma. The flowers have a green centre. This hybrid is reported to be sterile and does not set seed. ‘Merinda’ is a very attractive cultivar which has become very popular in cultivation. Based on the reports to date, the cultivar is a hardy shrub for moist soils in temperate climates. Plants prefer full sun or partial shade and can be pruned after flowering to promote dense growth and promote flowering for the next season.

Leptospermum ‘Tickled Pink’ is another of the colourful cultivars developed at Bywong Nursery. It a hybrid between L. polygalifolium ‘Cardwell’ and L. ‘Rhiannon’. L. ‘Tickled Pink’ is a medium shrub which grows to about 2m high with an upright growth habit. It has elliptical to narrowly linear-elliptical leaves to about 10mm long. The 5-petalled, brilliant pink flowers are larger than is typical for the genus being about 20mm diameter with numerous small stamens surrounding the central stigma. The flowers have a green centre and are followed by woody fruits containing many seeds; the fruits remain unopened until they are removed from the plant or the plant dies. L. ‘Tickled Pink’ is a very attractive cultivar which should become very popular in cultivation. Based on the characteristics of its parents, the cultivar can be expected to be a hardy shrub for moist soils in temperate climates. Plants prefer full sun or partial shade and may be pruned severely if necessary.

L. ‘Outrageous’ is another colourful cultivar developed at Bywong Nursery. It a hybrid between L. polygalifolium ‘Cardwell’ and L. ‘Rhiannon’. L. ‘Outrageous’ is a medium shrub which grows to about 2m high with drooping branches and elliptical to narrowly linear-elliptical leaves to about 15mm long. The 5- petalled, deep red flowers are larger than is typical for the genus being about 20 mm diameter with numerous small stamens surrounding the central stigma. The flowers have a green centre and are followed by woody fruits containing many seeds; the fruits remain unopened until they are removed from the plant or the plant dies. L. ‘Outrageous’ is a very attractive cultivar which should become very popular in cultivation. Based on the characteristics of its parent, the cultivar can be expected to be a hardy shrub for moist soils in temperate climates. Plants prefer full sun or partial shade and may be trimmed to shape if necessary.

All these cultivars are protected by Plant Breeders Rights and cannot be propagated commercially without approval. Home gardeners can, however, propagate plants for their own use. To retain the characteristics of the cultivar, propagation by cuttings is needed. Cuttings of hardened, current seasons’s growth strike readily.

Ed. I acknowledge I have taken data from the ANPSA web site presumably prepared by Brian Walters. I am interested to know whether any of our members are growing any of these or other new cultivars under our local conditions.


Birdscaping Australian Gardens

Here is a new book by George Adams who in 1982 published the book Birdscaping Your Garden and spoke to our Group soon afterwards. We held a copy in our library.

Now George has added to and brought the old book up to date. The full title of this new one is: Birdscaping Australian Gardens: using native plants to attract birds to your garden.

This is a beautiful book giving lots of practical advice on how to attract birds and other wildlife into your garden. The first section has general landscaping advice, there is a chapter on plant selection, and a section on bird species with a distribution map so you can see what birds are in your area. There are lovely colour photos and illustrations throughout.

Check out the price at Florilegium Book Shop, Glebe, on (02) 9571 8222 or on-line at http://www.florilegium.com.au/. Mention you are a member of APS.


We suggest P&H members who need to renew their membership complete the form in the centre of Native Plants for NSW and post it to Pip Gibian at her address above or choose the direct deposit option, follow the directions carefully and advise Merle Thompson and Gordon Brooks by email. Alternatively just pay Pip at the next meeting. Please ask if you are unsure of your membership status which is shown on the address label afixed to APS publications you receive quarterly.


Parramatta and Hills District Group

Email: apsparrahills@gmail.com
Website: https://austplants.com.au/Parramatta-And-Hills
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APSPARRAHILLS/