FFF766 - WATTLE

This is a silver wattle (Acacia dealbata), a native Australian tree or large shrub famous for its bright yellow, fluffy pom-pom flowers and feathery, blue-green leaves.

This is a common plant in both the Australian bush, a street tree in towns and cities, and also a decorative shrub in gardens. Its finely divided, fern-like (bipinnate) leaves with a soft grey-green or silvery tone are highly decorative. Spherical, sweet-scented clusters of bright yellow blossoms bloom during winter and spring.

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FFF764 - CAMELLIA 'MARGARET DAVIS'

This is a Camellia japonica 'Margaret Davis' flower, featuring large, ruffled, creamy-white petals edged in vibrant raspberry-red or rose-pink. It is an upright, evergreen shrub with glossy, dark green foliage, blooming in late winter through to spring.

It thrives in dappled light, partial shade, or morning sun and needs to be protected from harsh afternoon sun. It prefers acidic, moist, and well-draining soil rich in organic matter. Excellent as a feature plant, in flowering hedges, or grown in large pots and containers.

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FFF763 - LUCULIA

Luculia gratissima is a species of flowering plant in the family Rubiaceae. It is an ornamental plant that is found from the central Himalayas to northern Indo-China. The Latin specific epithet gratissima means "most pleasing" or "most agreeable".

It is a large shrub or even a small tree growing to 4 m tall by 1.5 m broad, with pointed ribbed leaves, and clustered fragrant pale pink flowers in autumn and winter. As it does not tolerate temperatures below 5 °C, it requires cultivation under glass in temperate zones. However, it may be placed outside in a sheltered, sunny spot during the summer months. It is a recipient of the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

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FFF761 - CAMELLIA

Camellia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are 100–250 described species, with some controversy over the exact number. The genus was named by Linnaeus after the Jesuit botanist Georg Joseph Kamel, who worked in the Philippines, though he never described a camellia.

This genus is famous throughout East Asia; camellias are known as cháhuā (茶花) in Chinese, "tea flower", an apt designation, as tsubaki (椿) in Japanese, as dongbaek-kkot (동백꽃) in Korean and as hoa trà or hoa chè in Vietnamese.

Of economic importance in the Indian subcontinent and Asia, leaves of C. sinensis are processed to create the popular beverage, tea. The ornamental Camellia japonica, Camellia oleifera and Camellia sasanqua and their hybrids are represented in cultivation by a large number of cultivars.

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FFF760 - CYMBIDIUM ORCHIDS

Cymbidium, or boat orchids, is a genus of 52 evergreen species in the orchid family Orchidaceae. It was first described by Olof Swartz in 1799. The name is derived from the Greek word kumbos, meaning 'hole, cavity'. It refers to the form of the base of the lip. The genus is abbreviated Cym in horticultural trade. This genus is distributed in tropical and subtropical Asia (such as northern India, China, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Borneo) and northern Australia.

The larger flowered species from which the large flowered hybrids are derived grow at high altitudes. Cymbidium plants are sympodial and grow to a height of 60 cm and the racemes as high as 90 cm. The raceme grows from the base of the most recent pseudobulb. Each flower can have a diameter of 5 to 10 cm, according to the species.

They bloom during the winter, and each plant can have up to fifteen or more flowers. The fantastic range of colours for this genus include white, green, yellowish-green, cream, yellow, brown, pink, and red [and orange] and black (and there may be markings of other colour shades at the same time), but not blue. The flowers last about ten weeks. They have a waxy texture. The rounded sepals and petals have about the same dimensions. They show very diverse colour patterns, different for every species.

Cymbidium is one of the most popular and desirable orchids in the world because of the beautiful flowers. These plants make great houseplants, and are also popular in floral arrangements and corsages. They have been cultivated for thousands of years, especially in China. Cymbidiums became popular in Europe during the Victorian era. One feature that makes the plant so popular is the fact that it can survive during cold temperatures (as low as 7˚ C or 45˚ F).

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FFF759 - CINERARIA

Cineraria is now generally treated as a genus of about 50 species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, native to southern Africa. The genus includes herbaceous plants and small sub-shrubs. In the past, the genus was commonly viewed in a broader sense including a number of species from the Canary Islands and Madeira which are now transferred to the genus Pericallis, including the Florist's Cineraria (Pericallis x hybrida). The uses for Cineraria include topical application for the treatment of cataracts.

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FFF758 - SPRING?

We are in midwinter, and although it has been a mild winter up till now, it was a surprise to see an odd plum tree producing its blossom already... All our seasons are quite askew!

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FFF757 - IRISES

We already have many Spring bulbs flowering in our garden and of course the florist shops are full of bunches of cut flowers that remind us that Winter is only the prelude to Spring. Here are some buds of Dutch iris, a great favourite.

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FFF748 - CHRYSANTHEMUMS

Chrysanthemums, sometimes abbreviated to mums or chrysanths, are perennial herbaceous flowering plants in the family Asteraceae that bloom in the autumn. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia, and the centre of diversity is in China. Many thousands of horticultural varieties and cultivars exist.

In Australia, as well as being the signature flower of Autumn, they are also associated very much with Mother's Day, which falls in Autumn (second Sunday in May). No doubt the "Mum" of the abbrevaited flower name lends itself to the association.

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FFF747 - PURPLE PRINCE

Beautiful roses of the Brindabella Purple Prince™ variety. This modern shrub rose is highly regarded for its intense, traditional rose fragrance and superior disease resistance. it has large, fully double blooms (approximately 10 cm in diameter) that open in a rich magenta-purple and often fade to a deep lavender as they age. Noted for having one of the strongest perfumes available in modern shrub roses, this rose matches beauty of colour with delightful aroma.

It is a vigorous, bushy shrub reaching a mature size of about 1.5-2.0 m tall and wide. It has clean, dark green, glossy leaves that are highly resistant to black spot and powdery mildew and is often advertised as a "no spray rose". It requires at least six hours of direct sunlight for best flowering performance. It makes a good cut flower.

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FFF743 - GOLD BUNNY ROSE

Floribunda roses are a modern breed of rose that have been developed by crossing them with a Hybrid Tea. They have a cluster of several flowers on each stem that vigorously grow thought a long flowering season to give a magnificent floral display to the landscape. They have a high resistance to diseases which makes them a great low maintenance rose. Gold Bunny has soft golden ruffled blooms that flower in abundance. Also available as a standard and a climber.

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FFF740 - ECHINACEA

Echinacea hybrid "Sweet Fuchsia Sunseekers" is perfect for a spectacular show of purple-red flowers through summer and autumn. Its tidy and compact rosette of foliage is complemented by masses of big blooms crowned with a central cone. This easy-to-grow perennial coneflower is happy in most well-draining soil and once established, needs very little water. Attractive to pollinators, Echinacea "Sweet Fuchsia Sunseekers" is a great cut flower to pop in a vase and brighten up your home too.

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FFF735 - GLADIOLUS

Violet-colored gladiolus (shown here is the very popular variety 'Purple Flora'), offer stunning, tall spikes of rich, velvety purple blooms perfect for borders, cutting, and adding vertical interest to gardens in full sun during summer. These reliable corms are easy to grow in well-drained soil, attract pollinators, and can provide continuous colour if planted in succession every few weeks.

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FFF729 - SUMMER GARDEN

Our Summer has been late in coming and our Spring was cool and wet. However, the flowers seem to have liked this type of weather and the garden looks quite lush.

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FFF725 - RHODODENDRON 'MRS C.B. VAN NESS'

This is a Rhododendron hybrid derived from crossing two other hybrids: 'Princess Juliana' (s) x 'Florence Sarah Smith'. It is a medium-sized evergreen shrub with compact habit and pointy, mid-green foliage. It is perfect for garden beds that receive dappled shade. In October-November, glowing crimson buds open to reveal compact trusses of trumpet-shaped, satiny dark-pink blooms. It requires well-drained, humus-rich, acidic soil.

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FFF719 - YELLOW CLIVIA

Clivia is a genus of monocot flowering plants native to southern Africa. They are from the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. Common names are Natal lily or bush lily. They are herbaceous evergreen plants, with green, strap-like leaves. Individual flowers are more or less bell-shaped, occurring in umbels on a stalk above the foliage; colours typically range from yellow through orange to red. Many cultivars exist, some with variegated leaf patterns.

Species of Clivia are found only in South Africa and Swaziland. They are typically forest undergrowth plants, adapted to low light (with the exception of C. mirabilis from the Western Cape). Clivia miniata grows into large clumps and is surprisingly water wise. It is also reportedly naturalised in Mexico.

It is a popular plant for shady areas and is commonly seen growing in older established suburbs in most Australian states. It is also popular in New Zealand, Japan, China and southern parts of the USA , particularly California. Clivias grow to a height of about 45 cm, and various varieties have flowers that are red, orange or yellow, sometimes with a faint, but very sweet perfume.

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FFF716 - SWEET BAY

Laurus nobilis is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub with green, glabrous (smooth) leaves. It is in the flowering plant family Lauraceae. It is native to the Mediterranean region and is used as bay leaf for seasoning in cooking. Its common names include bay tree (esp. United Kingdom),  bay laurel, sweet bay, true laurel, Grecian laurel, or simply laurel.

Laurus nobilis figures prominently in classical Greco-Roman culture. The laurel plant and its wreath symbolise victory, honour, and achievement, with roots in Ancient Greek and Roman cultures where laurel wreaths were awarded to victors in athletic and military competitions.

The symbolism also extends to wisdom and the arts, as it was sacred to Apollo, and to poets crowned as "poets laureate". In modern times, the laurel wreath represents academic accomplishment at graduation: The Bachelors degree is from the Latin Baccalaureatus, meaning crowned with bay laurel. The wreath of laurel is also used to commemorate fallen soldiers.

Worldwide, many other kinds of plants in diverse families are also called "bay" or "laurel", generally due to similarity of foliage or aroma to Laurus nobilis.

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FFF715 - ANEMONES

Anemone, is a genus of about 120 species of flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae in the north and south temperate zones. They are closely related to Pasque flowers (Pulsatilla) and Hepaticas (Hepatica); some botanists include both of these genera within Anemone. The name of the flower is from the Greek ἀνεμώνη (anemōnē) which means "daughter of the wind", from ánemos "wind" + feminine patronymic suffix -ōnē.

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FFF713 - DAFFODILS

Narcissus is a genus of predominantly spring perennial plants in the Amaryllidaceae (amaryllis) family. Various common names including daffodil, daffadowndilly, narcissus, and jonquil are used to describe all or some members of the genus. The garden hybrid "Parisienne" is shown here.

Narcissus has conspicuous flowers with six petal-like tepals surmounted by a cup- or trumpet-shaped corona. The flowers are generally white or yellow (orange or pink in garden varieties), with either uniform or contrasting coloured tepals and corona. Narcissus were well known in ancient civilisation, both medicinally and botanically, but formally described by Linnaeus' in his "Species Plantarum" (1753).

The genus is generally considered to have about ten sections with approximately 50 species. The number of species has varied, depending on how they are classified, due to similarity between species and hybridisation. The genus arose some time in the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene epochs, in the Iberian peninsula and adjacent areas of southwest Europe.

August 21 is Daffodil Day in Melbourne, organised by the Cancer Council, is a fundraising event held annually in August to support cancer research, prevention, and support services.

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FFF712 - PEACH BLOSSOM

The first tentative bloom of Spring, in the form of peach blossoms, appears...

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