Monarch Marching North

One of the paper daises - Xerochrysum bracteatum 'Dargan Hill Monarch'

This spectacular Paper or Everlasting Daisy – Xerochrysum bracteatum ‘Dargan Hill Monarch’  is on the march – blooming all the way along the North  Line in the Red Sand Garden.   One of this spring seasons most sensational sights at the Australian Garden.

Did you know?

• The name Xerochrysum comes from the Greek xeros meaning ‘dry’ and chrysos meaning ‘golden’.  Bracteatum is from the Latin bracteatus, meaning ‘bearing bracts’.
• A ‘bract’, which looks like a flower petal, is actually a modified leaf.  The flower is actually a cluster of small flowers at the centre of the bracts – take a closer look.
• Xerochrysum bracteatum was previously known as Bracteantha bracteata and before that as Helichrysum bracteatum.  Botanists rename plants as their understanding of how plants are related to each other grows and changes through research.
• Australia has hundreds of different species of ‘paper’ or ‘everlasting’ daisies.  These daisies are in the family Asteraceae.  The Asteraceae family has over 20,000 species worldwide.
• The original wild form of Xerochrysum bracteatum grows wild in every State of Australia.

Hot spots:

• Growing along the North Line in the Red Sand Garden.  Best spots to photograph this display are from the concourse in front of the Visitor Centre and from the Visitor Centre Observation Deck.

Growing tips:

• These plants grow in full sun, in light well-drained soil.
• Propagation from directly sown seeds.
• This daisy also looks spectacular growing in pots.
• A great butterfly attracting plants for your home garden.

Use tips:

• A great plant for dried flower arrangements the flowers of this daisy will hold their yellow colour if cut and hung upside down in an airy, dry spot, out of direct sunlight.

References

• For more information on plant names see:

Plant Names – A guide to botanical nomenclature.  Roger Spencer, Rob Cross and Peter Lumley, CSIRO Publishing, 2007.

The Wattles are Waking up!

The Wyalong Wattle in bloom in the Eucalypt Walk

Our wonderful Wattles are waking up and beginning to bloom in the Australian Garden and surrounding bushland.  Lots of different species, forms and shapes to see.

Did you know:

• The Golden Wattle, Acacia pycnantha, is Australia’s national floral emblem.
• Acacias are believed to have evolved on the ancient continent of Gondwana some 45 million years ago.  This great southern continent was made up of Australia, Antarctica, Aftica, America, India and New Zealand.  Acacias still grow in all these countries apart from the Antarctic and New Zealand.
• It is estimated that there are between 1200- 1350 species of Acacia world- wide.
• The Acacia is Australia’s largest genus of flowering plants with over 954 species.
• Acacias are legumes with roots accommodating bacteria that have the ability to fix nitrogen, which adds nutrients to the soil.
• Wattle seeds are high in protein and some species have traditionally been used as food by Indigenous people.  Wattle seeds are now grown for the bushfoods industry.

Hot spots:

Best places to see Wattles in the Australian Garden are:

• The Box Garden in the Eucalypt Walk
• Check out the Leafless Rock Wattle, Acacia aphylla in the Diversity Garden.  It’s strange and beautifully-sculptural form is currently in flower – look for the delicate pale yellow spherical balls hidden deep in the spines.

Growing tips:

There is a wattle for every part of the garden. They vary in height, width, habit, growth form, growth speed, longevity, attractiveness and foliage colour. Small compact wattles are ideal accompaniments to any garden and provide winter colour, habitat for native fauna and provide a range of foliage types to add interest to any landscape or to act as the feature plant of the garden. Species selection is important when choosing which wattle to plant and where to plant it.

Vodcast from Volunteer Master Garden – Margaret Clark

done

Would you like to know more?

Join the  Wonderful wattles tour

On: Wattle Day 1 September 2009

1.30 – 2.30pm

Come and celebrate Wattle Day at the RBG Cranbourne!

Join a member of the horticultural team on a stroll through the Australian Garden. Explore the range of wattles that can be used for home gardens and the stories of wattles in Australian culture.

Then head to the newly renovated Boonerwurrung Café and enjoy an afternoon tea of wattle seed cheesecake and billy tea.

$18 adult

$15.30 child/concession

Bookings required.

Tel: (03) 5990 2245

Let us know what’s happening in your garden?

We are always delighted to recieve comments from our Blog Readers.  If you would like to ask a question or let us know what wattles are in bloom in your area then please use the ‘comment’ function below.

The Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne is growing…

The Australian Garden Stage 2

The Visitor Centre extension will open in spring 2009

The Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne is still growing, with exciting new projects on the horizon including the extended Visitor Centre, second stage of the Australian Garden and newly-opened Woodland Picnic Area.

We appreciate your understanding and patience during these works and recognise that this may from time to time have an impact on visitor enjoyment of the Gardens. However, we are confident that visitors will still be inspired by this amazing Garden.

The Australian Garden is set to expand with the completion of Stage 2 scheduled for mid-2011. Features will include The Ian Potter Lakeside Precinct, Weird and Wonderful Garden, River Walk and much more.

The Visitor Centre

Work to expand the current Visitor Centre is already underway. The extended Visitor Centre will be open to visitors from spring 2009 and will include an auditorium for talks, workshops and displays, a private function room and an extended café.

The Gardens Shop

At The Gardens Shop it will be business as usual. Browse through an exciting range of Australian Garden inspired products.

The Woodland Picnic Area

The Woodland Picnic Area is now open in the RBG Cranbourne bushland, providing a great play space for children, shelter, seats and free BBQ’s.

Eucalypt Festival – celebrating our iconic Australian

The Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne will be celebrating our annual Eucalypt Festival from the 3 to the 19 April 2009.

For information on activities and events follow the link to our website.

If you have a favourite story or photo of a Gum Tree please add it to this page via ‘comments’ below.

Eucalyptus leucoxylon in flower in the Australian Garden

A flush of Desert Colour – Sturt’s Desert Pea

Sturt's Desert Pea in the Red Sand Garden

Sturt’s Desert Pea – Swainsona formosa is now in bloom along the first half of the North-line in the Red Sand Garden.

A flush of colour cascading across our arid centre, the sight of these wildflowers springing to life after rain is one of the natural wonders of Australia.

March is a wonderful time to experience a little of that desert delight at the Australian Garden.

Did you know?

• Specimens of Sturt’s Desert Pea were first collected by William Dampier on 1 September 1699.
• The Common Name of Sturt’s Desert Pea honors the explorer Captain Charles Sturt who collected specimens near to Coopers Creek in 1845.
• Sturt’s Desert Pea is the floral emblem of South Australia.

Hot spots:  Sturt’s Desert Pea is best viewed from the Concourse outside the Visitor Centre overlooking the Red Sand Garden.  For a closer look see pots of Sturt’s Desert Pea in the Home Garden.

Growing tips: The plants in the Australian Garden have been grown from seed (both seeds and grafted plants are readily available).

If growing plants in Melbourne:

• Sturt’s Desert Pea is a short lived perennial, it is however, often grown as an annual in domestic gardens.  You can collect seedpods at the end of the season for re-sowing in late-spring in the next year.
• If growing from a grafted plant (Desert Peas are grafted onto a more robust New Zealand Pea), this allows for a longer lived plant and the opportunity to grow one of the many different rare colour selections -  Pink with dark pink boss (in the common form the boss is black against red), red with red boss and white with white boss.
• Seeds grow well in peat pots.  When they are starting to grow vigorously transfer them to a self-watering pot.  These plants do well in self-watering pots as: it helps keep water off their leaves which minimises fungal attacks to which they are prone and allows you to move them around the garden or undercover if it’s going to rain.
• Sturt’s Desert Pea likes good quality, moist, freely-draining potting mix if in a container.  If growing in the garden freely draining soil with some moisture is there preference.  They like a spot  in full sun.
• Plants flower and grow vigorously in warm summers.
• Sturt’s Desert Pea is usually prostrate in growth habit rambling along the ground.

Swirling in the Summer Sun – Australian Native Hibiscus

West Coast Gem in the Diversity Garden

The native hibiscus, Alyogyne huegelii ‘West Coast Gem’ is in full bloom this February.

The purple – blue flowers of this gorgeous native hibiscus bear a striking resemblance to swirling satin skirts.  The flowers are a fabulous contrast to the red sand garden and are very photogenic dancing gently in the breeze.  It is well worth considering where they might fit into your garden at home.

Growing Tips: This native hibiscus is a very hardy plant suitable for most soils and  grows well in a sunny position.  Once this plant is established in your garden it has low water requirements.    From late spring to the end of summer the species is covered in flowers some 7 cm across.

Jumping into flower!

Kangaroo paws

One of the most wonderful things about the Australian Garden at the moment are the spectacular Anigozanthos or Kangaroo paws in flower around the garden.

Kangaroo paws are an iconic Australian native plant with distinctive flowers and a diversity of colours, from hot reds through to cool yellow-greens. Hotspots for Kangaroo paws in the Australian Garden are the margins of the Red Sand Garden and the Future Garden – be sure to bring in your camera, they are simply stunning.

Growing Tips: Kangaroo paws are amongst the most rewarding Australian natives to plant in home gardens as they are easy to grow with stunning results. Kangaroo paws grow from an underground rhizome and produce long strappy leaves and beautiful flowers on long stems during spring and summer. There are many new varieties of Kangaroo paws with a wide range of colours to choose from.

To get the best out of Kangaroo Paws in your garden, grow them in a position that offers full sun and well-drained soil. Kangaroo paws are drought tolerant but do require slightly more water while flowering and when they are establishing growth in their first summer.

Pruning Kangaroo paws back to ground level once they have finished flowering is important to keep them healthy.