FFF434 - AUTUMN GARDEN

In these unfortunate times we are living through, we are experiencing a daily exposure to terrible news from around the world, but even more alarming are the news from our country, our own city, the suburb we live in. The Coronavirus Pandemic is making no distinctions and we are all at risk. Staying at home and limiting our exposure to the virus is the best way to deal with the pandemic.

If we are lucky enough to have a garden, we can venture there and take courage, relax and be revitalised in body and spirit from the green energy of the plants and the colour and fragrance of the flowers. If no garden is at hand, a bunch from flowers from the florist (I certainly hope they are listed as "essential services"!) or your nearest market can bring some cheer into your home.

My best wishes to you and those near and dear to you.

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FFF433 - CORYMBIA

Corymbia ficifolia or the red flowering gum also known as Albany red flowering gum (previously known as Eucalyptus ficifolia) is one of the most commonly planted ornamental trees in the broader eucalyptus family. It is native to a very small area of south coastal Western Australia (measured in just tens of kilometres) to the east of Walpole (430 km Southeast of Perth), but is not considered under threat in the wild.

In nature Corymbia ficifolia prefers infertile, sandy soils but it is readily adaptable to most temperate locations, provided it is not exposed to severe frost or sustained tropical damp. It is an ideal street tree as it is hardy, moderately fast growing, and rarely grows large enough to require pruning.

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FFF432 - AUSTRALIAN FLAME PEA

Chorizema cordatum, known as the heart-leaf flame pea or Australian flame pea, is a flowering plant of the Fabaceae (pea family), endemic to gravelly or loamy soils in eucalyptus forests, in the moist south western parts of Western Australia. It is a bushy, evergreen shrub. The attractive and noticeable flowers appear in late winter or spring in long racemes. Either starting at the end of stems or from the leaf axils.

Flowers are orange and red, 10 to 12 mm in diameter. The heart shaped (or narrower) leaves are 3 to 5 cm long with somewhat wavy edges. It can be grown as a garden plant, and does well in other parts of the country, (such as Sydney on the other side of the Australian continent). However, a summer with lower humidity is better suited for this plant. Propagation from seed is easily achieved, and cuttings strike well. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

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FFF431 - CAPEWEED

Arctotheca calendula is a plant in the sunflower family commonly known as capeweed, plain treasureflower, cape dandelion, or cape marigold because it originates from the Cape Province in South Africa. It is also found in neighbouring KwaZulu-Natal.

Arctotheca calendula is naturalised in California, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Australia, and New Zealand, and considered a noxious weed in some of those places. It is a squat perennial or annual which grows in rosettes and sends out stolons and can spread across the ground quickly. The leaves are covered with white woolly hairs, especially on their undersides. The leaves are lobed or deeply toothed. Hairy stems bear daisy-like flowers with small yellow petals that sometimes have a green or purple tint surrounded by white or yellow ray petals extending further out from the flower centres.

It is cultivated as an attractive ornamental groundcover but has invasive potential when introduced to a new area. The plant can reproduce vegetatively or via seed. Seed-bearing plants are most likely to become weedy, taking hold most easily in bare or sparsely vegetated soil or disturbed areas.

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FFF430 - RED FLOWERING GUM

Corymbia ficifolia or the red flowering gum also known as Albany red flowering gum (previously known as Eucalyptus ficifolia) is one of the most commonly planted ornamental trees in the broader eucalyptus family. In 2009, genetic studies showed that C. ficifolia comprises a natural group with two other Western Australian species C. calophylla and C. haematoxylon. The group was classified as section Calophyllae within the subgenus Corymbia.

It is native to a very small area of south coastal Western Australia (measured in just tens of kilometres) to the east of Walpole (430 km Southeast of Perth), but is not considered under threat in the wild. In nature Corymbia ficifolia prefers infertile, sandy soils but it is readily adaptable to most temperate locations, provided it is not exposed to severe frost or sustained tropical damp. It is an ideal street tree as it is hardy, moderately fast growing, and rarely grows large enough to require pruning. The largest known single-stemmed tree in the world (216.5 cm diameter) is located on Princes Street in Hamilton, New Zealand.

Because of its big and lovely colourful flowers, genetic improvement for cold resistance in Dublin area in Ireland is being carrying out by collecting seeds from Western and Southern Australia in the coldest parts of Australia where it grows. In Ireland most of the plants were killed by severe frosts but the surviving shoots have been kept alive by tissue culture in order to produce the desired strain.

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FFF429 - WAX FLOWER

Philotheca is a genus of about 45 species, all of which occur only in Australia. The genus has been recently increased in number by the transfer of about 39 species from the genus Eriostemon. Transferred species include Philotheca myoporoides which was previously known as Eriostemon myoporoides.

Philotheca buxifolia, commonly known as Box-leaf Waxflower, is a shrub in the family Rutaceae. It produces white or pink flowers. The species occurs for the most part around Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, however, it has been introduced as a garden ornamental plant in many locations around Australia.

The plant thrives in a range of climates from sub-tropical to cool-temperate. It prefers well-drained soils in full sun or part shade. Dislikes root disturbance. Can be tip pruned to promote a bushy habit, however, if pruned too hard they can be slow to recover. Can be affected by scale. Profuse flowers make this a good feature plant. Also suited to containers or as a hedge.

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FFF428 - ROSES ARE RED...

While visiting the Victorian State Rose Garden, I took some photos of some brilliantly red roses, perhaps none so intense as this variety, "Grande Amore". It was bred by Tim Hermann Kordes (Germany, 1995) and introduced in Germany by W. Kordes' Söhne (Retail) in 2004. Introduced in United States by Wayside Gardens in 2008 as 'Grande Amore'.

This is a standout among red hybrid tea roses, acclaimed for its depth of colour and exceptional disease resistance. It produces continuous flushes of dark red, pointed buds, which open into high- centred blooms of a shiny, intense red, set off by deep green glossy leaves. It is a moderately fragrant rose and can be used readily as a cut flower.

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Happy Valentine's Day!

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FFF427 - FUCHSIA GUM

Eucalyptus forrestiana, commonly known as Fuchsia Gum, Forrest's Mallee or Forrest's Marlock, is a small tree which occurs in an area near Esperance in Western Australia. It was named after George Forrest (1873-1932). It is a mallee Eucalyptus with smooth bark and grows to between 1.5 and to 6 metres in height. It has bright red buds and yellow flowers which appear between summer and winter.

Two closely related species, E. dolichorhyncha and E. stoatei, have been treated as subspecies in the past. It is a pretty multi-stemmed native tree with a dark green canopy and smooth grey bark. It produces brilliant flowers in summer that are red caps and yellow flowers in summer and winter. Great as a streetscape tree or suited to a garden, adding colour and drama. It prefers well-drained sandy soils. It is drought and frost tolerant and copes with limited waterlogging. Flowers and fruit are useful as cut flowers.

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FFF426 - WATER LILY

Nymphaea (water lily) is a genus of hardy and tender aquatic plants in the family Nymphaeaceae. There are about 50 species in the genus, which has a cosmopolitan distribution. White-flowered waterlilies (of several species) are the national flower of Bangladesh.

The name Nymphaea comes from the Greek term "Νυμφαία", possibly related to "Νύμφη" meaning "nymph". The nymphs in Greek mythology were supernatural feminine beings associated with springs, so the application of the name to delicately flowered aquatic plants is understandable. Despite its common name "water lily" (water-lily, waterlily), Nymphaea is not related to the true lily, Lilium.

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FFF425 - WISTERIA

Wisteria (also spelled Wistaria or Wysteria) is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, that includes ten species of woody climbing bines native to the Eastern United States and to China, Korea, and Japan. Some species are popular ornamental plants, especially in China and Japan. The botanist Thomas Nuttall said he named the genus Wisteria in memory of Dr. Caspar Wistar (1761–1818). Questioned about the spelling later, Nuttall said it was for "euphony", but his biographer speculated that it may have something to do with Nuttall's friend Charles Jones Wister, Sr, of Grumblethorpe, the grandson of the merchant John Wister.

Wisteria sinensis, shown here flowers in the spring (just before or as the leaves open). Here is a Summer-flowering plant, which is in our neighbour's garden presently. Our squiffy weather may have something to do with the unseasonal blooming! The flowers of this species are fragrant, and the seeds are produced in pods similar to those of Laburnum, and, like the seeds of that genus, are poisonous. Wisteria is an extremely hardy plant that is considered an invasive species in many parts of the world.

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