Welcome to the July enewsletter |
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Native Plants for NSW – July 2021
The monthly enewsletter of the Australian Plants Society NSW |
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Calochilus paludosus (red beard orchid, photo: Mark Abell) |
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In our July issue
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Welcome to the enewsletter
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From our new President Activities A trip to the central west in October A wander through the bush in Newcastle Recording bushwalks and species Community contacts Biennial conference update More reading -
Study Group updates
- On the APS NSW website.
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Welcome to the enewsletter
With Stay-at-home orders for Greater Sydney and restrictions for the rest of NSW, it's a chance to catch up on last year's activities. This issue has some ideas for walks. Each enewsletter issue is also saved as a pdf file here. Stories, photos, events and feedback are welcome. Please email the editor Rhonda Daniels at enewsletter@austplants.com.au |
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From the President Heather Miles
We held a strategy workshop in June with Presidents and representatives of District Groups to firm up our direction for the coming five years. Thank you to all those who attended. Everyone was enthusiastic about the future! We have a list of priorities which we will share with you soon. It is focused on gardening, conservation, promotion and education, as well as more support for members and groups.
Many people are mystified about what the board of APS does. Would you like to attend a meeting or two to see what goes on? Most are by Zoom and you can join in to observe or participate. Let me know if you're interested: president@austplants.com.au
As I write, COVID has reared its ugly head again with Stay-at-home orders now in place across Greater Sydney and further afield. Please abide by all government guidelines and restrictions in your activities.
On a personal note, I went on a photography tour to Broken Hill, Menindee and Mungo in early June (see collage below). It was inspiring to be in the far west. Lake Menindee was full and magnificent by helicopter. We were evacuated from Mungo due to rain as just 10 ml wipes out the roads. At Broken Hill, the sculptures were wonderful, but so was the native garden of arid plants – just beautiful! I'm hankering to visit again when I can. |
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Activities – be aware of changes
With Stay-at-home orders until at least Friday 9 July, please check with organisers for arrangements. Activities may change at short notice. Groups can email events for our calendar here to secretary@austplants.com.au |
Walks and Talks at Ku-ring-gai Wildflower Garden, St Ives
North Shore Group's Walks and Talks program is on in July. Meet at 9.45 am at Caley's Pavilion for a session about 10 am to 12 noon. Please book your place by the Saturday before by providing your name, mobile number and emergency contact to Wendy Grimm at wagrimm@tpg.com.au or phone 0419 323 035. Details here.
- Monday 12 July: Gum trees (walk only, if allowed to be held)
- Monday 19 July: Weeds and bush regeneration
- Monday 26 July: Grevillea and Hakea
Friday 9 July – North Shore Group
The July meeting on Hornsby Council's Greening our Shire project is by Zoom. Please contact Sue Fredrickson for Zoom details: paulandsuefreddo@bigpond.com or 0401 362 921. Details here.
NAIDOC week in the Royal Botanic Garden The Sea of Hands at The Calyx designed by Yaegl woman Frances Belle Parker is on COVID hold, but read more here. Friday 30 July – Schools Tree Day, Sunday 1 August – National Tree Day More here. Photo below: Eucalyptus robusta at Kurnell (by Jane March)
Sunday 12 September – 60th anniversary spring festival at Stony Range Botanic Garden, Dee Why |
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A trip to the central west in October
John Aitken is organising a four day APS trip to the Central West for 15–18 October. The program includes visits to Burrendong Botanic Garden and Arboretum near Wellington, Dubbo Botanic Garden, Taronga Western Plains Zoo and the Knop property at Narromine. APS members Andrew and Jennifer Knop have regenerated their property at Narromine by eliminating feral animals and weeds.
Andrew gave a Zoom presentation to APS NSW last year sharing his and Jennifer's experiences on regenerating their two properties in western NSW. See his presentation on the APS NSW YouTube channel.
Read more here and more details in the August enewsletter. |
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A wander through the Newcastle bush
With the COVID lockdowns and more of his work being done from home, Mark Abell has taken to enjoying some lunchtime walks in the patch of bushland near his Newcastle home. With weekly walks through the area he has been able to observe the changes to the plants through the year and has found many gems tucked away. He says he has found a much greater variety of plants than he would have initially expected. For example, there are at least 10 species of ground orchids in the area and 9 Acacia species. The area also contains some rare and threatened flora.
Mark says: I look forward to seeing what everyone else can find in their local patch of bush.
Read more with Mark's photos here. |
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Recording bushwalks and rare and endangered species
Parramatta Hills Group is trying to improve ways to record plants seen on bushwalks, particularly rare and endangered species. Tony Maxwell reports on progress. For bushwalks we use a plant list template to provide a prompt list of species and an update mechanism to include sightings of new species for future walks at the same location. For the initial prompt list we have used Atlas of Living Australia or other reputable lists of the walk area. This provides context and interest for our walkers on the day. Our walk sightings are noted and extra species added to the list. The updated list is then available for any future walks in the same area. This process is opt in but most walkers seem happy to use it.
For rare or endangered species we have created a sightings framework. Members can record basic information about each sighting to help further discussion and interest. More data can be added at any time.
Check both these initiatives on our website here. We plan to add stories and pictures. Other groups may have different approaches. Please contact Tony Maxwell to see if efforts can be coordinated: tmax0277@gmail.com.
Photo below: the rare Acacia pubescens from a Parra Hills walk here. |
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Community contacts – answers from our experts group
Members of the community contact the APS NSW office email with a wide variety of questions. Glenda Browne summarises recent queries including:
- overseas requests on commercial applications of plants and a kangaroo apple in Ireland (photo below: Solanum aviculare)
- corrections and extra information for our plant profiles database including Callistemon 'Hannah Ray' here named after Mrs Hannah Hazlewood (nee Miss Hannah Ray), of the well-known Hazlewood nursery family
- shared activities such as BioBlitzes, which are an intense period of biological surveying in an attempt to record all the living species in a designated area
- a tour guide keen to improve her knowledge of Australian native plants and bush tucker to share with her international visitors wanted to get in touch with other tour guides in our society.
Read more here. |
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Biennial conference 2022 update
APS NSW is hosting the ANPSA Biennial Conference in Kiama in September 2022.
Heather Miles reports: Planning for the Biennial Conference in September 2022 is ramping up, as we firm up tour itineraries, excursions and the conference agenda and speakers. We are planning two extra events before the conference – a complimentary tour of Kiama and surrounds on Saturday 10 September and a Market Fair on Sunday 11 September, with local farmers' produce and crafts and native plants for sale. We'll be inviting local nurseries to participate along with our district groups, with a focus on hard to source and indigenous species. If you'd like to explore how to help with the conference, either before or during, please contact me at president@austplants.com.au
Read more about the conference here and register your interest. |
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More reading - Anne Gray from Northern Beaches Group reports on the APS quarterly gathering at Kurnell in May, focusing on the walk along the Banks–Solander track in Kamay National Park. Read more here. Photo below: Anne with a Gahnia (by Jane March).
- Remembering Newcastle member Gordon Rowland – promoter of Australian native plants in garden design here.
- Read a review of a book on plant flammability in The Sydney Morning Herald here.
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Study Group updates
Nicole Maher summarises recent Study Group newsletters. Explore our wide range of national Study Groups and their newsletter archives and see how to join a group for free here.
Garden Design Study Group Newsletter 115, May 2021
The “What’s up down under” theme of this newsletter explores how members have dealt with the problems and opportunities presented by their soil. Selecting plants relative to soils is fundamental to good garden design, so it is important to know what is under the surface, especially as many garden soils may have been altered by excavation for the house. Knowing not just the matrix of soil types but also a pH map and broad drainage patterns will arm you well for planning and design. SE Qld members visited member Erica Richardson’s 55 acre property, previous cattle grazing land, which she is slowly turning back to native gardens and bushland. The level site has cracking grey clay with some shattered rocks under and on the surface. Erica has dug several small depressions to mound up the clay soil into adjacent crescent mounds 300–400 mm high, to create growing areas which will hold rainwater for a time, allowing it to be slowly absorbed. The planted swales, related to contours, could provide a distinctive pattern of vegetation across the open grassland, based on the Keyline method of water harvesting for revegetation. When planting in clay soils always dig square holes – not round – to avoid root circling and resultant instability, and to ensure roots will naturally grow outwards into the hard clay top and subsoil. |
Australian Pea Flower Study Group Newsletter 2, June 2021
Editor Shirley McLaren introduces several fruit characters which can help identify plants in the pea genus if there is no flower. The size, shape and the way the pods open are helpful. There is now a Facebook group, only open to Study Group members, to allow members to share photos and communicate with other members in real time. Photo below: Peas in Newcastle bush by Mark Abell. |
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Goodeniaceae Study Group Newsletter 20, April 2021
Member Neil Duncan reports on his time during the lockdown last year when he reduced his lawn and put in a 7 m x 4 m sand bed. The bed has about 15 cm of washed sand over a loam soil. Most of the plants are Dampiera, Scaevola and Lechenaultia, with some others which also need good drainage. He spread a Tuscan gravel mulch around the plants. Scaevola platyphylla, Scaevola phlebopetala and Lechenaultia formosa all looked outstanding in late autumn, and Neil is hopeful the other plants will put on a great show in spring. Margaret Pieroni describes her 1 acre property west of Denmark WA, which has tall eucalypts, Karri, Marri and Jarrah occurring together with a rich understorey of plants including five Goodeniaceae. Margaret has propagated Dampiera hederacea and Scaevola microphylla from cuttings to plant back in areas disturbed during the building of the house. |
Hakea Study Group Newsletter 76, June 2021
Paul Kennedy, the Group Leader, discusses the Group’s seed bank and the need to get rare and poorly known hakeas into cultivation. He has a list of about 35 species and subspecies in this category. He plans to use grafting to propagate species that are rare and difficult to get seed of including Hakea acuminata, aculeata, aenigma, ednieana, ivoryi, myrtoides, megalosperma and standleyensis. If successful, plants will be distributed to members. |
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On the APS NSW website
Our website has our membership benefits, how to join, District Group details, volunteering opportunities and resources. Members get a membership renewal email and can also renew online here. The form in Australian Plants is for the journal only. - Last year as a COVID activity, we started a project to expand our plant profile database. Profiles are being added regularly by Dan Clarke and Jeff Howes. Check our database here.
- Local bushwalking: Enjoy pea flowers of Georges River National Park by Karlo Taliana here.
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Xanthorrhoea macronema by Mark Abell in his local Newcastle bushland
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