For our April activity we are going to Lane Cove Bushland Park. The area of the park we are planning to visit is very different from our usual bushwalk haunts. It is still sandstone country, but this time it is a deep, heavily-shaded gully with a creek running down it. The vegetation type is wet sclerophyll forest. Tall trees, largely turpentines, provide the shade. Underneath these is a different world with a great many ferns and climbers. The understorey features young trees and shrubs, some of which are also found in rainforest. Most of the leaves are larger, greener and softer than those seen along sandstone ridges. This is the park in which Ray and Elma Kearney documented a large number of fungi and found undescribed species. Fungi are ephemeral, sometimes they are there in large numbers, while at other times there are none.  Hopefully we will see some fungi, which can be highly coloured, but there is no guarantee. It has been an unusually wet season, so we might be lucky.

 Members are best to arrive at 1.45pm ready to start the walk at 2pm on Saturday afternoon 24th April. This park is surrounded by housing, and some of the streets are narrow with little parking available.  Hopefully there is adequate parking in Osbourne Road, just south of Second Avenue, where there is an entrance to the park’s walking tracks. Lane Cove Council cares for its bushland better than some councils and the tracks are well made. There are fairly gentle slopes and well-constructed steps. If there is continued rain, it may be wet underfoot.

This outing promises to be very interesting, and quite different from those in spring last year. Although Covid restrictions have eased, please book with Jennifer on 0407 456 577. We still need to have an accurate record of who attends.        

Cabbage Tree Palm, Livistonia australis	Cordyline stricta
Ficus coronata, sandpaper fig	Pimple Fern, Microsorium cartilagenum. The pimples are spore-containing sori

Group Meeting  -  "Plant Propagation from Cuttings"

Our next meeting will feature an interactive, practical session and discussion on Plant Propagation from Cuttings.

Our speaker is Lesley Waite who has led our Parra/Hills propagation group at the Community Nursery in Baulkham Hills for the past 15 years or so, and has taught propagation techniques to several groups of local residents via the Hills Shire Community Environment Centre at Annangrove.

We will discuss and demonstrate ways to set up a propagation system at home, and then, using a variety of native plant material, show all the steps from the preparation of cuttings through to the successfully ‘struck’ plants, ready for putting into the ground.

Attendees are encouraged to bring their ideas, successful techniques, questions, problems and/or cuttings to help make this a truly interactive and informative session for all - novice and expert alike. 

 Plant Sale

PLANTS FOR SALE

Here’s a list of plants raised lovingly by our propagation people that we’re offering to members for purchase. We don’t want these plants to go to waste. They are healthy and can be planted straight away. So if you or any of your friends would like to enhance your gardens, we’d love to hear from you!

The procedure for you to order and obtain these plants is:

• Ordering: Contact Ian itcox@bigpond.com
• Pick up: email for details
• Prices: large $8; medium-small $6

Pot sizes are:

large 8 inches, small-medium 4-6 inches.

There could be a few days delay after ordering, as the plants will need to be fetched from the Hills Shire nursery.

Plant Name	Quantity	Pot Size	Click here for photos and/or details
Acacia ulicifolia	2	medium	here
Correa baeuerlenii	7	small	here
Crowea saligna	1	medium	here
Doryanthes excelsa	3	medium	here
Eremophila glabra ‘Amber Carpet’	1	medium	here
Eremophila glabra ‘Mallee Lipstick’	6	medium	here
Eremophila maculata ssp. brevifolia	2	small	here
Eremophila maculata x viscida	1	medium	here
Graptophyllum ilicifolium	2  2  2	large  medium  small	here
Gastrolobium celsianum syn. Brachysema lanceolatum	1	large	here
Grevillea ‘Forest Rambler’	14	medium	here
Grevillea juniperina (red flowers)                                (yellow flowers)	15 1	medium	here
Grevillea 'Lady O'	21	tubes	here
Grevillea lanigera	5 14	small  tubes	here
Grevillea rosmarinifolia x baueri	2	small	here
Grevillea sericea Collaroy Plateau form	2	medium	here
Hakea bakeriana	4	medium	here
Hardenbergia violacea	2	medium	here
Hibbertia scandens	6	small	here
Isopogon anemonifolius	1	medium	here
Melastoma affine	1	small	here
Pimelea ferruginea ‘Bonne Petite’	2  3	medium  small	here
Prostanthera ovalifolia variegated	3	medium	here
Prostanthera scutellarioides	1	small	here
Scaevola aemula blue  Scaevola aemula pink	13   1	medium  medium	here
Thryptomene 'Paynes Hybrid'	11	medium	here
Westringia fruiticosa	1	large	here
Zieria prostrata	3	medium	here
Zieria smithii	1	medium	here

Payment can be made by EFTPOS to BSB 062 139

Acc No. 0090 1865

Location of Gumnut Hall