Contents
Snippets: The claret ash – a dinky-di exotic
City of Sydney parks Anne-Maree Whitaker
2016 sees the bicentenary of Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens and the sesquicentenary of nearby Moore Park.
The deep roots of reciprocity Jodi Frawley
Over the course of the 19th century, the Botanic Gardens, Sydney (now the Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney) grew from a garden attached to the Governor’s demesne to a globally significant scientific institution. From the time of its enclosure in 1816, plants, plant material and plant information were gathered in the garden, herbarium, library, museum and nurseries on the Farm Cove site.
Ornamental palms in 19th century Australia John Leslie Dowe
From 1860 to 1880 there was a rapid increase in the number of species of ornamental palms cultivated in Australia, mostly as a result of the construction of glasshouses and the increased rates of exchanges and acquisitions associated with specialised botanic garden collections.
Dwellers in the mist Greg Keighery
South-western Australia is a globally significant biodiversity hotspot for flowering plants. Within it, there are particular centres of diversity, such as Fitzgerald River National Park, which has more than 1700 species of plants, and the Stirling Range which has 1500 species, 85 of which are endemic. Themountain bells described here are one well known component of the Stirling Range endemics.
Unofficial gardening – making history Trevor Pitkin
The author’s time as an unofficial gardener began, when, having established an ‘outer garden’ on the nature strip in front of his house and in front of both neighbours’ houses, he looked across the road with heightened interest to a 4-metre deep expanse of kikuyu and some council trees that lay adjacent to a railway for hundreds of metres in both directions. An ambition to create the ‘borders’ was crystallising.
The Australian National Botanic Gardens Don Beer
Walking in the Australian National Botanic Gardens in Canberra is an intensely Australian experience. It is not just that the plants are Australian natives. It is also that the design is informal – and deliberately so. They were planned to provide a ‘natural’ ambience. As such, they have been influential. Along with the Australian Native Plants Society and its earlier incarnations, the Australian National Botanic Gardens have helped define the Australian identity.
Florilegium, Sydney’s Painted Garden Colleen Morris
The book The Florilegium: the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney celebrating 200 years, was recently released. The exhibition on display at the Museum of Sydney from July until October 2016 displays the vibrant and detailed works of 64 Australian and international artists. Their paintings illustrate the diversity of plants grown by the Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust.
AGHS autumn garden tour 2016 Anne Vale
An overview of the April 2016 AGHS autumn garden tour to north-eastern Victoria.