Articles on Australian Plants

This is a list of articles published in 2009.  To view links to these articles, please click here.

• Growing Western Banksias in Containers; Growing in containers may be successful with some western species.
• Insects and Flowers; Insects and plants have a complex relationship and they inter-react in a variety of ways.
• Teatree Web Moth (Webbing Caterpillar); A nasty little pest that can disfigure small-leaved teatrees and other Myrtaceae.
• The Garden in Winter; It’s cold. It’s miserable. But it’s not all doom and gloom in the garden.
• The Joy of Weeding; We’re kidding, right?! Well, no. It gives us the chance to observe what’s happening around us.
• Everlasting Daisies; Australian daisies for massed colour in the garden.
• The Dunedin Botanic Garden and its Australian Section; Growing Australian plants further south than the bottom tip of Tasmania.
• Australian Heaths; Epacris, Styphelia, Richea, Woolsia? Possibly unfamiliar to many but with lots to offer.
• A Natural Pond in your Garden? The characteristics found in larger wetlands can be reflected in garden ponds.
• Attractive Correas; Some hardy, bird attracting species to try in your garden.
• The Rare and Remarkable Species of Australian Discaria; With only two Australian species, these prickly shrubs are rarely seen in cultivation.
• Australian Native Succulents; You may be surprised to learn that Australia has at least 400 succulent species. 15 February 2009
• Short Items
  • An Australian Style Garden
  • Getting to Know the Boab Tree
  • Propagating Difficult Seed
  • Sooty Mould on Correas and Other Native Plants
  • Acacias, Butterflies and Ants
  • One ‘Must Know’ Principle of Gardening
  • Garden Maintenance Tips – 3
  • Striking Beauties
  • A Mystery Tree Bears Fruit
  • Tripping Triggers
  • Garden Maintenance Tips – 2
  • On the Fringe
  • Grevilleas as Plant Allergens
  • Wild Orange – Capparis mitchellii
  • Garden Maintenance Tips; How to make your ferns and kangaroo paws look their best!
  • Mysteries of Nardoo
  • Growing Grass Trees – The Queensland Experience
  • Australian Cycads

This is a list of articles published in 2008.  To view links to these articles, please click here.

• The Tale of Two ‘Ps’ – Plants and Pollinators; Flowers, sex and insects! The games they play….
• Acacia leprosa and ‘Scarlet Blaze’; The surprise discovery of a red flowered wattle by bushwalkers in 1995
• Mistletoe – Part 2; Is mistletoe a noxious weed or a very important component of biodiversity?
• Growing the Sydney Waratah; Many people have trouble growing this plant – these guidelines will help!
• Mistletoe – Part 1; Much despised – but the mistletoe has a surprisingly long association with western culture.
• Aussie Oddities; A few plants that might be hard to find but well worth the effort.
• Plant Taxonomy – Part 2; The Linnaean system of naming and describing plants and animals is still in use today.
• You don’t have to call Dryandra Banksia; Just because new taxonomy has been published, doesn’t mean you have to accept it.
• Plant Taxonomy – Part 1; Why was Linnaean taxonomy “…too smutty for British ears”?
• Designing for Plants in Small Spaces; With careful selection, native gardens can still be enjoyed when space is at a premium.
• Burrendong’s Hakeas; One of the great success stories at Burrendong Arboretum is the Hakea collection.
• The Use of Correas in Garden Design; Careful selection can produce a colourful display of these bird-attracting plants.
• Wattle It Be? By Seed or Cuttings?; Tradition says that wattles can’t be easily grown from cuttings. Stupid tradition….
• When Native Plants Go Feral; They may be native but does that mean we have to love them?
• Caring for Established Native Plants in the Garden; Can you really plant it and forget it? It’s possible but…..
• Cheery Acacias; Using the colourful ‘green and gold’ to brighten up a dull garden.
• Roses with Other Names; The Rose family includes valuable food plants and serious weeds.
• Grafting Grey-leafed Eremophilas in Melbourne; Success with grafting comes with persistence and practice.
• Mulches Aren’t Just Mulches; The wrong mulch can actually harm plant growth. Select with care!
• Mundulla Yellows – The Cause Remains Controversial; Nutrient imbalance, biological pathogen or herbicide – does the evidence stack up?
• Growing Climbers; Where can you put a few climbers so they don’t wander too far?
• Garden Design: Now and Then; Garden design should be much easier now than it was 40 years ago.
• Short Items
  • Are Native Plants and Australian Gardens Increasing in Popularity?
  • Small Callistemons
  • Looking After Your Christmas Bells
  • King’s Holly – The World’s Oldest Living Tree?
  • Westringia ‘Wynyabbie Gem’
  • What is a Cultivar?
  • Pruning Australian Plants
  • Celia Rosser’s Banksias
  • The White Waratah
  • Alas poor Jasmin(oides), I knew her well …. or thought I did
  • The Patient Propagator
  • Creating a Small Garden Pond
  • From Pod to Pod – A Tale of Lomatia
  • Plants of the John Oxley Reserve
  • Dianella – A Planting Problem
  • Banks Generate Rising Interest
  • Plants That Bite!
  • Grevillea ‘Golden Lyre’
  • Watering and Grey Water Use
  • Graptophyllum ilicifolium
  • Blue Mountains Group Emblem – Lambertia formosa
  • Expatriate Plants
  • Wattles and Bushfires
  • A Blue-tongue in My Garden
  • Hibiscus geranioides
  • Colour in Summer
  • A Bird in the Bush…
  • Crinum peduncalutum – Swamp Lily
  • Three Rare Grevilleas
  • Cactoblastis Moth and Prickly Pear
  • Dendrobium Beetle
  • Can Possum Pruning be Good for Your Trees?
  • Wallum Banksia

This is a list of articles published in 2007.  To view links to these articles, please click here.

• Warming to the Ice Plants; The family Aizoaceae may be unfamiliar but it contains some historically important plants.
• Cover Up! Groundcovers; Useful plants for a variety of garden situations.
• Footprints in the Pollen; The weird and wonderful ways that plants achieve fertilisation.
• An Introduction to Plant Nutrition; What do plants need to grow well and how do they get it?
• What’s in a Name? How do botanists arrive at the names they bestow on plants? Here’s a few examples.
• No-water Gardening; In times of increasingly unreliable rainfall, proper plant selection is more important than ever.
• Bush Food Species for Temperate and Cool Climates; A few edible Australian plants for southern gardens.
• Tolerance of Eremophilas to Heavy Frost; A severe winter in 2006 tested the frost tolerance of a range of emu bushes.
• So Dryandra Becomes Banksia – What’s All the Fuss About? Is modern taxonomy inaccessible to the non-botanist?
• Under Umbrellas; The challenge of establishing plants under established trees
• Wallum Pea Flowers; Some colourful ‘peas’ to watch out for in coastal heath this spring.
• Thomasias and Their Close Relatives; Not as well known as they should be, the thomasias have a lot to offer.
• Growing Port Jackson Fig as Bonsai in a Warm Temperate Climate; Avoiding pitfalls in growing this popular bonsai subject.
• Herbicide Yellows; Herbicide use is linked to decline in tree health in an urban environment.
• Two Possums, One Tree and Two Humans; Who wins when two humans and a possum or two match wits? The jury is still out…..
• Understanding Plant Names; Contrary to popular opinion, plant names aren’t chosen just to confuse the amateur.
• Prostanthera – The Mint Bushes; The mint bushes have a lot to offer in a native garden.
• A Feast of Banksias; The Banksia Farm at Mt Barker is home to all 73 known Banksia species.
• Planning or Designing a Garden – Is there any Difference? Designing takes into account the whole plant and the whole garden.
• The Dryandras – About the Book; Publication of the recent book on dryandras has been quite a journey.
• Styling Australian Species as Bonsai: Mallee Eucalypts; The multi-trunked, mallee bait of growth can be replicated on a small scale.
• Stimulating Brews from the Hop Bushes; There’s more to the ‘dods’ than many people think…..
• Mundulla Yellows: Proof of Cause(s) at Last; Has the cause of this disease been finally identified?
• Marvellous Melaleucas; There’s a lot to like in this under-rated genus.
• Short Items
  • Brachychiton bidwillii: Little Kurrajong
  • Research on Hedging and Coppicing
  • Gompholobium: The Glory Peas
  • Invasive Grevilleas on The Ridgeway
  • The Value of Leaves
  • Native Frangipani; Hymenosporum flavum
  • When to Plant Eucalyptus Seed
  • Stratification of Eucalyptus Seed
  • Dusky; The Runaway Coral Pea
  • Eucalypts by Cuttings
  • Moonlighter, Stinger or Gympie Gympie
  • Using Australian Ferns in the Garden
  • The genus Hypocalymma
  • Mulch and Native Plants
  • Beaufortias in Toowoomba
  • Establishing Dendrobium Orchids
  • Pruning Grevilleas
  • Growing Better Cycads From Seed
  • Another Attention Grabber
  • Corymbia ‘Summer Red’ and ‘Summer Beauty’
  • Grevillea beadleana
  • Ornaments in the Garden
  • Attention Grabbers
  • Conserving Water in the Home Nursery
  • Delicate Beauties or Tough Survivors
  • Try the Tastes of the Bush
  • Everything New is Old Again
  • Wet Forest Fires — a Few Observations
  • The Fringe Lily – Thysanotus multiflorus
  • The Use Of Native Grasses In Your Garden
  • New South Wales Christmas Bush
  • Groundcovered
  • Using Fertilisers in the Native Garden
  • Warrigal Greens (Tetragonia tetragonioides)
  • Plants that really get up your Nose
  • If You Start Sneezing don’t Blame the Acacias

This is a list of articles published in 2006.  To view links to these articles, please click here.

• Australian Limes; Australian members of the citrus family make an impact.
• Bringing Verticordia out of the Too Hard Basket; They can be a challenge in cultivation – but worth the effort!
• Isopogon and Petrophile; Spectacular and adaptable members of the Protea family.
• A Small Wildlife Garden; A suggested design for a wildlife friendly garden in a small space.
• Boab: Adansonia gregorii; This iconic plant may have a future as a food source.
• Vale William ‘Bill’ H. Payne (1926-2005); An overdue tribute to one of ASGAP’s most tireless supporters.
• How I have Fun While Killing Plants; Getting started with plant propagation – just have a go!!
• Hakeas; Characteristics and cultivation methods.
• Getting Them Home Alive; Proven methods for field collection of propagation material.
• Melaleucas Doing it Tough; Melaleucas surviving, but not thriving, under harsh conditions.
• Waterwise and Waterless Gardens; Ways to help your plants cope with drought.
• Effective Watering in the Garden; Improving water management in the garden.
• The Misunderstood Mistletoe; Is the mistletoe the serious pest that many believe?
• Leaves that Trick; Is it a leaf or a leaflet? It’s not always easy to tell.
• Acacia Seed Raising; Experiences in growing wattles from seed.
• Native Plants and Phosphate; Interactions of phosphorus in soils and the implications for plants.
• Teatree Time; Leptospermum species start to make their presence felt in native gardens.
• Australian Daisies; Some colourful and easily grown members of the daisy family.
• Those Other Myrtaceae; A look at some lesser known members of the myrtle family.
• Short Items
  • Are you fed up with Drop-dead Plants?
  • In Praise of Poverty Bush
  • A Very Beaut Banksia!
  • Six Plants for a Very Small Garden
  • What do Botanists Mean by the Term ‘Secund’?
  • Eremophilas in Containers
  • The Dianella Diet – It’s Just for the Birds!
  • Cordylines – Palm Lilies
  • Tree Waratah
  • Kangaroo Paw Maintenance
  • Principles of Pruning
  • Botany for the Beginner
  • The Australian Garden at Cranbourne
  • The Genus Kunzea
  • Over the Top!
  • Native Frangipani – Hymenosporum flavum
  • Tips for Successful Plant Propagation
  • How to grow Flannel Flower from Seed
  • Treating Fern Spores with Bleach
  • Transplanting Native Plants

This is a list of articles published in 2004. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – September 2004

• On the Brink – 11: (Australian Plants at Risk) Persoonia nutans
• Margaret River, So Much More Than Wine. The eucalypts of the Margaret River forests.
• Edible Plants
• Coastal Plants – Connecting Tasmania and South-east Queensland
• The Genus Olearia
• Western Victoria and the Grampians in Spring
• The Byfield Fern. It might look like a fern but Bowenia is a cycad!
• Short Items – Native Gardens and Birds; Growing Better Cycads from Seed; Common Names and Their Origins; Cuttings and Myths; Designing a Garden – The Lang Approach; Moonlight Stinger or Gympie Gympie.

Articles – June 2004

• On the Brink – 10: (Australian Plants at Risk) Banksia cuneata
• Mallows are Frog Favourites; Want a frog-friendly garden? Hibiscus-like plants may be the answer.
• True Blue Australians; Blue flowered plants
• Eucryphia lucida – Leatherwood
• Planting Under Established Eucalypts
• Spotlighting the Deadly Night Shade Family – The Solanaceae
• Commercial Growing of Cut Flowers
• Short Items – Waratahs…A Few Facts; Wedding Bush – Ricinocarpos pinifolius; A Rare Experience – The elusive pink flannel flower makes an appearance; Gardening in a Time of Water Restrictions; New Life – Experiences in plant recovery after a drought; Myrmecochory – An important seed dispersal method in nature.

Articles – March 2004

• On the Brink – 9: (Australian Plants at Risk) Zieria granulata
• The Rainforest: Yes, It may be Copied; Experiences in setting up a suburban rainforest
• Botany and How She is Spoke
• Trials of Long-stem Tube Stock
• Coming to Grips with the Genus Correa; The history and current activities of ASGAP’s Correa Study Group
• The Grass Tree: Its Uses and Abuses
• Successful Propagation: Making the Right Choices; Practical advice on plant propagation from cuttings
• Short Items – Yellow Flowers; A Cut in Time – a non-pruner reforms his ways; Big Pots, Root Binding and Freshening Potting Mixes; Another view on Racosperma; Travelling with Cuttings; Are the Locals Good Enough? – using indigenous plants

This is a list of articles published in 2003. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 2003

• On the Brink – 8: (Australian Plants at Risk) Grevillea iaspicula
• Growing Native Plants in Containers
• Coping with the Drought; helping plants cope with extended dry weather
• Coastal Wanderings; spectacular wildflowers on the Central Coast of New South Wales
• Botany and Ecology of the ‘Nightcap Oak’, Eidothea hardeniana
• Genetic Provenance; the importance of preserving local genetic forms
• Australian Native Hibiscus
• Short Items – How to Grow Flannel Flower Easily; Potting Mixes: Roots Need Room to Breathe; A Reliable Wax Flower; Australian Native Grasses and Gardens; The Genus Boronia; The Late Inclusion of Trees in Garden Design

Articles – September 2003

• On the Brink – 7: (Australian Plants at Risk) Phaius tancarvilliae
• Garden Design for Australian Plants in a Changing World
• Small Gums for Small Gardens
• Santalum – a fascinating genus
• Protecting Threatened Plants
• Banksia as Bonsai
• The Genus Bauera
• Short Items – Scarlet Fuchsia: Graptophyllum excelsum; Vegetative Propagation; Treatment of Pea-type Seed; Bush Tucker – Burdekin Plum; Hakeas and Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos; Banksias and Drought

Articles – June 2003

• On the Brink – 6: (Australian Plants at Risk) Swainsona sejuncta
• So You’re Going to Western Australia to see the Wildflowers
• Verticordia in the Garden
• Eating and Drinking the Garden – recommendations for native plants that can be part of your everyday culinary experience!
• Growing Banksias in Northern Victoria
• Rediscovering Grevillea rosmarinifolia – The type form of this well known species was thought to be extinct – until rediscovered in two very different locations!
• Lilly Pillys in the Garden
• Short Items – Golden Guinea Tree (Dillenia alata); Growing Golden Penda; Growing Grevillea from Seed; Propagation for the Casual Grower; Fifteen Ideas for Garden Design; Grafting Grevillea caleyi

Articles – March 2003

• On the Brink – 5: (Australian Plants at Risk) Darwinia carnea
• Establishing Australian Plants – The Water Wise Way
• Proposed Name Changes in Acacia
• Isopogon and Petrophile – These two genera in the Protea family deserve to be much better known
• Some Australian plants in cultivation in England by 1800
• Grevilleas for Cultivation – Some of the more unusual species worth looking out for
• Longstem Native Tubestock – The Solution to the Willow Problem
• Short Items – The Queensland Tree Waratah; Grevillea ‘Poorinda Royal Mantle’; Growing Ferns from Spore; The Genus Dianella; Striking Cuttings in Water; Favourite Vines

This is a list of articles published in 2002. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 2002

• On the Brink – 4: (Australian Plants at Risk) Prostanthera teretifolia
• Alyogyne: An Update. Attractive but often neglected members of the Hibiscus family.
• Australian Plants in Seattle. A challenge for growers in America’s Pacific north west
• Montgomery Yellows? Is this further evidence of chemical poisoning as a cause of Mundulla Yellows?
• Some observations on Blandfordia (Christmas Bells)
• Temperate Area Eucalypts
• Developing Australian Plants for Commercial Horticulture
• Short Items – Basic Propagation from Seed; When is a Plant a Weed…..and when is it a useful volunteer?? Growing Sturt’s Desert Pea; More Growing Sturt’s Desert Pea; Happiness is a Hibbertia; The Family Malvaceae

Articles – September 2002

• On the Brink – 3: (Australian Plants at Risk) Isopogon fletcheri
• Dodonaea – The Hop Bush. Unusual and often colourful fruits make this genus a worthy addition to the native garden.
• Australian Cultivar Registration Authority: What is the ACRA and what does it do?
• Growing Eremophilas in the Dandenongs
• Understanding the System of Botanical Plant Names
• Mundulla Yellows – A Simple Case of Poisoning? Is overuse of herbicides the cause of this debilitating plant disease?
• A Few Proven Magnets. Some personal experiences in attracting birds and other wildlife to the garden.
• Short Items – Growing Orchids in the Garden; Bonsai with Australian Native Plants; Three Myoporums; Spring at the Burrendong Arboretum; The Eucalypt Wars – Part IV; Our Native Cherry

Articles – June 2002

• On the Brink – 2: (Australian Plants at Risk) Agapites meiniana
• History of Botanical Nomenclature – Just how did those confusing botanical names come about??
• Plant Breeders Rights: An Australian Native Plant Perspective
• Australian Cordylines – The exotic Cordyline australis is a popular garden subject, but what about the Australian species?
• Grafted Hakea – How to grow the spectacular western hakeas in unhelpful climates.
• Hang ’em High! – Growing Australian plants in hanging baskets
• A Fern which Changed Australian History – The role of nardoo in the fate of explorers Burke and Wills.
• Short Items – Grafting Geraldton Wax; Low Rainfall/Drought in Australian Garden Design; The Intimate Relationship Between Plants and Animals; Propagation of Grevilleas by Grafting; Biodiversity Revisited (when is there too much of a good thing!?); The Ranunculus Family

Articles – March 2002

• On the Brink – 1: (Australian Plants at Risk) Homoranthus porteri
• Ellis Stones: Landscape Architect
• The Mighty Canthium – A genus that deserves to be better known
• Edible Acacias
• Bark – The textures and colours of bark are often overlooked in landscape planning
• Our Wild Foods to the World
• The National Botanic Gardens of Wales – with a surprisingly large collection of Australian plants
• Short Items – 19th Century Skullduggery!!; Gymea Silly; Rare Eucalypts at Burrendong Arboretum; Our Magnificent Swamp Orchids; Increasing the Variety of Birds in the Garden; The Genus Regelia

This is a list of articles published in 2001. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 2001

• Favourites 7: Payne’s Thryptomeme
• The Propagation of Banksia
• When is a Baeckea not a Baeckea? – Name changes and new species
• Eremophila and Pollinators
• Review of the Promotive Effects of Smoke on Seed Dormancy
• The Passage of Fire – Adaptations to fire in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales
• Correa – Wild Fuchsia
• Short Items – Plants’ Adaptation to Drought; Growing Epacris in Containers; Germination of Epacrls Seeds using Plant-derived Smoke, Darkness and Heat; Olearia – The Daisy Bush; Grafting Eremophila; The Red Wattle

Articles – September 2001

• Favourites 6: Grevilleas….Lots of them!!
• Propagating Boronia
• Starting out with Native Orchids
• A Heathland Ramble – “Gardening Australia” visits south-east Queensland’s wallum
• Use of Native Grasses in Landscaping
• South West Cape Range, Tasmania
• Local Wildlife and Plants at Home in the Suburban Garden
• Short Items – Eucalypt Seeds; Propagation of Prostrate Acacias; Paws to Burn! A Hitchhiker’s Guide to Correa reflexa; Some Low Maintenance Thoughts; The Hop Bitter Pea – Daviesia latifolia

Articles – June 2001

• Favourites 5: Wahlenbergia stricta – Tall bluebell
• Queensland Raspberries…Australian members of the genus Rubus
• Eremophila: The Emu Bush
• A Mid-winter’s Patch – Plants to brighten up the cold, dank days of winter!
• Landscapes of South-west Western Australia – Why is the west the way it is?
• Water Conservation in the Garden
• Cultivation Shock….or “Fire and Ice”! – Successes and failures with Grevillea in a harsh climate.
• Short Items – What’s a karkella? Outwitting the Local Kangaroos; A Spectacular Persoonia; Smoked Vermiculite; What’s Behind that Name??; Unlocking the Secrets of Flannel Flowers

Articles – March 2001

• Favourites 4: Telopea speciosissima – Waratah
• A Trip to the South-West – Making a pilgrimage to the “Wildflower State”.
• Growing Callistemon from Seed
• Growing Calytrix – With more than 70 species, why aren’t Calytrix seen more often in cultivation?
• My Favourite Rainforest Plants for Containers
• Rotten Cheesefruit?…or Great Morinda?? The much maligned “cheese fruit”.
• In Honour of Ferdinand Bauer – The story of the botanical illustrator commemorated in the genus Bauera
• Short Items – Alyogyne huegelii, an attractive Australian hibiscus; One of the Toughest, Lomandra multiflora; Death of a Eucalypt; Growing Rainforest Vines; Candles in the Wind, Banksia ericifolia; To Prune or not to Prune?

This is a list of articles published in 2000. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 2000

• Favourites 3: Hardenbergia violacea – Native or False Sarsaparilla
• Christmas Trees – Australian native plants that are at their best at this time of year
• Sir Thomas’ Plants – Retracing the journey of Sir Thomas Mitchell in central Queensland
• Glyphosate and Cancer – Is there a link??? The evidence is conflicting.
• Poor Relations…. Often overlooked members of the Boronia family
• Direct Seeding of Native Vegetation to Achieve Biological Diversity
• The Australian Aquatic Garden
• Short Items – Grevillea baileyana; Why grow native plants in pots anyway?; Growing Orchids from Seed; The Three “R”s of Garden Design; Propagating from Cuttings; Magic Moments – unexpected delights in a native garden.

Articles – September 2000

• Favourites 2: Sturt’s desert pea in the UK….we’re kidding, right??? Wrong!
• Australia’s Native Orchids – The best epiphytic and terrestrial species for southern Australia.
• Textures and Forms of Australian Plants
• Corymbia, Corymbia……wherefore art thou Corymbia? Lumping or splitting the eucalypts??
• In Appreciation of the Common Black Wattle
• Adenanthos…….a member of the Protea family.
• Birdscaping….and the ‘Birds in Backyards’ Project
• Short Items – Bartle Frere Oak; The Pricelessness of Kangaroo Grass; Koalas and Eucalypts; Eremophila Seed Trials; How Not to Grow Eucalyptus caesia; Fertilising Australian Native Plants.

Articles – June 2000

• Favourites 1: Banksia spinulosa, the Hairpin Banksia.
• Back to the Future – Where Now for Bush Foods?
• Restoring Habitat through Revegetation: Following the “Three Rs”….Retention, Restoration, Revegetation
• An Introduction to Trigger Plants
• Rejuvenating an Old Garden: Time to re-plan, re-plant and rejuvenate.
• The Adaptable and Rewarding Crowea
• Plants of the Newnes Plateau
• Short Items – Exocarpos cupressiformis; Observations on Grevillea wilkinsonii; Needs Good Drainage!!!; Serendipity in Australian Garden Design; Propagation of Hakea; Growing Billardiera.

Articles – March 2000

• Getting Started 8: Potted Plants
• Using Indigenous Plants to Conserve Indigenous Fauna
• An Experience with Macadamia; Growing Macadamia in central Florida
• Birds in the Autumn Garden
• Between Jerusalem and the Acropolis; Walking in Tasmania’s south-west
• Paws for Reflection! Growing kangaroo paws.
• Growing Rainforest Plants
• Short Items – Firewheel Tree (Stenocarpus sinuatus)…..Coastal Update….Burdekin Plum (Pleiogynium timoriense)….Winter Colour….Lechenaultia formosa.

This is a list of articles published in 1999. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 1999

• Getting Started 7: Watering
• Shrubby Myrtles; There’s more to the myrtle family than bottlebrushes and tea trees!
• Weeds – The Silent Invaders
• Acacia – An Introduction
• Coastal Sandplain and Heathland Plants of Western Australia; Holly-leaved Banksia – Banksia ilicifolia.
• Mulga – Acacia aneura – A widespread and very useful wattle of central Australia.
• Epacrids from Cuttings – Propagating the Australian “heaths”.
• Short Items – Bush Tucker, Bunya Nuts…..Grevillea australis – Southern or Alpine Grevillea…..Successful Persoonia germination…..Goodia: No Seed; No Name…..Lace Flower – Melaleuca thymifolia…..Our Parasitic Plants

Articles – September 1999

• Getting Started 6: Planting Out
• Plants, Animals and Sex!…The X-rated activities that go on in the hidden parts of your garden
• Understanding Soils and Nutrients – Part 3
• The Weeping Emu Bush; Eremophila longifolia.
• Cultivation of Dryandra
• Hidden Treasures….a personal view. A brief history of evolution and utilization of the Australian flora
• The Blooming Lilly Pilly
• Short Items – The Ingnitability of Leaves of Australian Plants…..Two Rare New South Wales’ Grevilleas…..The Leaning Trees of Greenough…..Fireweed; a Spreading Pest of Eastern Australia…..Mountain Devils…..Positive Pavonia

Articles – June 1999

• Getting Started 5: Potting On
• Gardening for Butterflies
• Understanding Soils and Nutrients – Part 2
• Dead Finish; Acacia tetragonaphylla
• Coastal Sandplain and Heathland Plants of Western Australia: The marri – Corymbia calophylla.
• Will the Waratah Ever Fulfil its Potential?
• Spreading the Genes – The tricks that plants use in seed dispersal.
• Short Items – My Battle with Clematis aristata….My Dad’s Bunya Pine….Pultenaea from Cuttings….The Magnificent Tree Waratah….Wattle Day – a Short History…..Trees and Tags.

Articles – March 1999

• Getting Started 4: Propagation from Cuttings
• The Evolution of the Myrtle Family in Australia
• Understanding Soils and Nutrients – Part 1
• A Name Change for Most Eriostemons
• On the Nose – A Perfumed Garden…fragrance comes in many flavours
• A Garden and a Puff of Salt Air…gardening in coastal areas.
• Eremophilas in San Diego
• Short Items – Cuttings in the Cold….Tiliqua scincoides (Blue-tongue lizard) in my Garden….Growing Ferns from Spore…Buckinhamia; the Ivory Curl Tree….The Unique Kangaroo Paws….Plant Death in Pots.

This is a list of articles published in 1998. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 1998

• Getting Started 3: Growing from Seed
• Growing Tropical Australian Rainforest Trees…how to establish your own rainforest.
• Bush Food Species for Temperate Regions
• The Naming Game…plant names often contain a hidden story.
• Australian Plants and Essential Oils. What is the basis for the aromatic fragrance of the foliage of many plants?
• The Nurseryperson and You…a nurseryman looks at recent trends and relationships with the customer.
• Blandfordia in History. The early cultivation of “Christmas Bells” in Europe.
• Short Items – Direct Tree Seeding…The Value of a Tree…Will the REAL Callistemon “Captain Cook” Please Stand Up?…After the Virus; the impact of Rabbit Calicivirus (RCV)…Beaufortia and the Duchess of Beaufort…A Remarkable Red Wattle.

Articles – September 1998

• Getting Started 2: The Soil – Part 2 in our series about the basics.
• Australian Plants in Their Own Garden – Bush Tales from the northern Flinders Ranges..
• Tissue Culture of Grevillea Species at Mt Annan Botanic Garden – Tissue culture is an important technique for conservation of endangered species.
• Leptospermum – Tea trees are well known but relatively few are grown in gardens.
• Attracting Native Birds into Your Garden – A garden filled with birds is just a matter of correct planting.
• The Romance of Haloragodendron lucasii – A rare plant rediscovered in suburban Sydney.
• Butterfly Mania – Why would you want to encourage insects that eat your plants? Lots of reasons….
• Short Items – Ants: Good or Not-so-good in the Bush?; Symphionema; The Orchid Which Catches Stingless Bees; Hibbertia; Pruning Australian Native Plants; Sheer Exhilaration! Growing Sturt’s Desert Pea.

Articles – June 1998

• Getting Started 1: Myths and Fables – A new series about the basics.
• Growing Darwinia – Grafting holds the key to successful growing of these spectacular plants.
• Flowers…..Who Needs em?!!! – There’s more to an interesting Australian garden than colourful flowers.
• Commercial Propagation of Australian Wildflowers
• Associations Among Plants, Birds and Insects – How these relationships can effect back-yard ecology.
• Blue Mountains Wilderness – A journey into the rugged country of the Coxs and Kowmung Rivers.
• Aboriginal Uses of Plants Around Sydney – Plant species used for food, tools and medicines
• Short Items – Growing Ptilotus in Sydney; Junk Food Kills Birds; An Unusual Propagation Method; Coppice Gardening – Adopting An Old Forestry Practice; Germinating Seeds in Plastic Bags; Wallabies at the Bottom of the Garden

Articles – March 1998

• Floral Emblems – Eucalyptus globulus (Tasmania).
• Australian Climbing Plants – What goes up…….usually stays there!
• Medicinal Properties and Bush Foods of eucalypts – Eucalypts have proved highly valuable to both aborigines and European settlers.
• A Protean Garden in California – Australian and South African plants flourish far from home.
• An Introduction to Ferns – Some hardy ferns for cultivation, indoors and outside.
• A Short History of Grevillea cultivation in England – Grevilleas were introduced in the “old dart” as early as 1792!
• Using Spaces and Styles in Overall Garden Design – How to achieve a practical and spacious landscape
• Short Items – Mycorrhizas in native flora; Growing grasses; The Wee Jasper Grevillea; Autumn – a time to rejuvenate the garden; The Ranunculus family in OZ; The genus Lomatia

This is a list of articles published in 1997. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 1997

• Floral Emblems – Wahlenbergia gloriosa (Australian Capital Territory).
• A Simple Botany of Wattles – the characteristics of the genus Acacia.
• The Flowering Sands – Flora of the “Wallum” (coastal heath).
• Bunya Feast – Bunya pines produce a bountiful harvest.
• Phosphorus Needs of Australian Plants – Removing the uncertainty regarding phosphorus toxicity.
• Re-establishing Local Bushland in Suburban Melbourne
• Dyeing with Eucalypts – Adding colour to wool…..
• Short Items – Growing plants from seed; Plant nomenclature; Getting the priorities right; Hakea trineura – a geographical oddity; Around the “S” bend; Growing grass trees.

Articles – September 1997

• Floral Emblems – Anigozanthos manglesii (Western Australia).
• The Quandong (Santalum acuminatum) – a desert plant with a big future.
• Meeting the challenge of propagating the Quandong
• Australian plants as weeds at home and abroad
• Australian Native Poisonous Plants
• Protecting and creating habitat in bushland and local parks and gardens
• Australian Hibiscus (and relatives) in pots
• Short Items – From tree to seed; Tea tree oil; The “Bog Method” for germinating seed; Viruses and orchids; Eremophila racemosa – Back from the brink; Eight ways to kill cuttings.

Articles – June 1997

• Floral Emblems – Gossypium sturtianum (Northern Territory)
• Grey and Silver Plants in the Australian Garden
• Australian Plants in California
• Australian Plants for Bonsai
• Gardening by Computer
• Germination Trials with Eremophila species
• Growing Callistemons in Large Pots
• Short Items – Growing dendrobiums; Vegetative propagation of eucalypts; Striking cuttings in winter; Australian plants and the senses; Botanical terminology; Preventing disease in potting mixes

Articles – March 1997

• Floral Emblems – Telopea speciossissima (New South Wales)
• Grow your own Rainforest
• Capricornia Cuisine – Bush Tucker in Central Queensland
• Revegetating for Habitat in Parks, Gardens and Roadsides
• Pests and Diseases of Australian Plants
• Australian Proteaceae in Pots
• Starlight’s Banksia – A new Banksia for eastern Australia
• Short Items – Pasteurised cutting/potting mix; Pruning to rejuvenate; The white waratah; The blueberry ash; Propagation of ferns; Trigger plants

This is a list of articles published in 1996. To view links to these articles, please click on the desired month.

Articles – December 1996

• Floral Emblems – Epacris impressa (Victoria)
• Cultivation and Propagation of Boronia and its Relatives
• Australian Plants as Cut Flowers
• Small-growing Eucalypts
• Correas and Birds
• Bringing Back the Bush
• Three (More) Rogue Aussies!
• Short Items – Macro Results – Micro Method!; Grevillea rara Surfaces Again!; The Protean Legend (More or Less….); A Frog – friendly Garden; How Does One Sharpen Sand?; Potting on Seedlings

Articles – September 1996

• Floral Emblems – Dendrobium bigibbum (Queensland)
• The Impact of Fire – An Historical Perspective
• Planning for All-Year Colour
• Views of the Australian Flora – The First Settlers
• Rediscovery of Grevillea batrachioides
• Murphy’s Laws of Gardening
• The Golden Everlasting – Bracteantha bracteata
• Short Items – Spirited Plants; Dusky – The Runaway Coral Pea;Growing Rhododendron lochiae; A Spider in the Rain Gauge; Cuttings and Myths

Articles – June 1996

• Floral Emblems – Swainsona formosa (South Australia)
• Fragrant Australian Plants
• Tower Hill – Large Scale Revegetation in Victoria
• Early English Views of the Australian Flora
• Rediscovery of Grevillea williamsonii
• Corymbia – New Genus in the Eucalypts
• Use of Smoke for Germination
• Short Items – Smoke Treatment for Baeckea behrii; Nardoo Sporocarps; Banksias, Sand and Superphosphate; Underground Orchid Found; Simple Propagation in Water

Articles – March 1996

• Floral Emblems – Acacia pycnantha (Australia)
• Flannel Flowers
• Phosphorus and Iron Nutrition
• Early Dutch Views of the Australian Flora
• A Different View of Plant Pests
• Australian Plants in California
• Grafting Mint Bushes
• Short Items – Grevilleas from Seed; History of Callistemon Cultivation; Legionnaire’s Disease; Seed Treatment for “Pea”-Type Plants; Ethics of Non-Indigenous Plants