Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plantsanpsa.org.au/grevSG/grev70.pdf · eat/share, grog, camping gear/linen etc. ACCOMMODATION: Stawell Park Caravan Park phone (03)

Newsletter No. 70 – February 2005

Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plants

Ref No. ISSN 0725-8755

Inside this issue:l Recovery plan for Grevillea montis-colel Field trip to WA part 1l Profile – Bill Cane part 2

and more....

GSG Victoria Chapter

Leader: Neil MarriottPh: (03) 5356 2404, Mob: 0408 177 989Email: [email protected]

Convener: Max McDowallPh: (03) 9850 3411, Mob: 0414 319 048Email: [email protected]

VIC Programme 2005Easter Friday, 25 – Tuesday, 29 MarchSUBJECT: Grevillea Workshop and Excursions,

Campout and Working Bee at “PanrockRidge” near Stawell.

– see details of itinerary on page 2.

Sunday, 22 MaySUBJECT: Garden visits in eastern Melbourne

combined with Australian DaisyStudy Group

VENUE: 10am – Ben and Carolyn Somerville18 Gwyn Rise, Vermont Sth.Phone: (03) 9802 1281 (Melway 62 H5)

– a new garden of new members of both study groups

VENUE: 11.30am – Peg McAllister61 Diane Crescent CroydonPhone: (03) 9726 5061 (Melway 37 F11)

VENUE: 1.45pm – Elspeth and Gary Jacobs377 Cambridge Rd MontrosePhone: (03) 9728 3492 (Melway 50 C5).

Please register with Max McDowallPhone: (03)9850 3411 [email protected]

AugustStill to be arranged – see next GSG Newsletter

Melbourne Cup WeekendHosting GSG Field trip to Western Victoria andSE South Australia

GSG NSW Programme 2005

For more details contact Peter Olde 02 4659 6598

Wednesday, 23 March

VENUE: Nathan Kirkwood9 Corella Road, Kirrawee

TIME: 9.30am for 10am startSUBJECT: An enthusiast at work in grafting and

hybridising the Australian flora.

Saturday, 9 – Sunday, 10 AprilAutumn Plant Sale

Sunday, 29 MayVENUE: Bushwalk, Darkes ForestTIME: 9.30am for 10am start, bring lunch & waterSUBJECT: Search for Grevillea caleyi/macleayana

June – Merv Hodge

July – G. phylicoides east side of Hawkesbury

August – Robinson Garden

September – no meetings as yet

October – Field trip

November – Christmas party

GSG QLD Programme 2005

Sunday, 24 April 2005VENUE: Home of Laylee Purchase,

41 Rocklyn St, Toowoomba, 4350PHONE: (07) 4630 2211SUBJECT: Propagation by cuttings

Sunday, 26 June 2005VENUE: Home of Denis Cox & Jan Glazebrook,

87 Daintree Dr, Logan Village, 4207PHONE: (07) 5546 8590SUBJECT: Propagation by seed

Sunday, 28 August 2005VENUE: Home of Merv. & Olwyn Hodge,

81-89 Loganview Rd, Logan Reserve, 4133PHONE: (07) 5546 3322SUBJECT: Propagation by grafting

Morning Tea at 9.30am – meetings commence at 10am.

For further information and directions contact Merv.Hodge, PO Box 381, Waterford, Qld. 4133.Phone/fax: (07) 5546 3322orEmail: [email protected]

Friday 25 – Tuesday 29 MarchEaster Camp/Working BeeNeil & Wendy Marriott’s

“Panrock Ridge” Panrock Reservoir Rd(aka Sisters Rocks – Black Range Road),Stawell – on left 7 km from junction at highwaysouth-east of Sisters Rocks. Phone 5356 2404to register, advising optional planned arrivaland departure dates/times. BYO food toeat/share, grog, camping gear/linen etc.

ACCOMMODATION:

Stawell Park Caravan Park phone (03) 53582709 at above junction or in motels in Stawell.Need to book early because of Easter StawellGift. Several beds are still available on-site.

Participants may arrive on Thursday if desiredand stay on longer. Please bring slides fortalks, specimens for ID, plants/cuttings forswap or sale etc. Come prepared with labelled

February 2005 Grevillea Study Group No. 70 2

tools such a trowel, weeding fork, spade, hedgeclippers, secateurs, lopper bow-saw, chain-saw(by arrangement with Neil who will providefuel), protective gloves, knee-protectors,(goggles or face-protector, and earmuffs forthose using or assisting with power tools).

Programme (weather permitting)

Friday 25 March AMArrival from 9am and morning tea.

9.30–10.30am and 11.00–12.30pm- informal tours of gardens.

12.30-1.00pm- lunch.

1.00pm- working bee in gardens followed by BBQ and

social get-together, grevillea discussions.

Ideas for talks and discussions:

- Methods of propagation, grafting etc.- Grevillea anatomy and identification –

use of keys.- Slide presentation of grevillea characters –

e.g. styles, perianths, conflorescenses, kindsof foliage etc.

- Grevillea taxonomy – where it’s heading?

Saturday AMDemonstration and Working Bee –garden bed preparation and planting.

PM Visit to Steven Smart’s nursery, followedby dinner in Stawell.

SundayWorking Bee – mulching demo and planting.

PM Trip to Grampians – Pomonal nativenurseries, Redman Rd etc – G. microstegia,G. alpina, G. aquifolium etc

Shared dinner at Neil’s followed by members’slide show etc.

Monday AM All day trip to Mt Langi Ghiran (G montis-colessp brevistyla) and Mt Cole (G. alpina dwarf,G. montis-cole ssp montis-cole).

Meet at Neil’s at 9AM.

Shared dinner at Neil’s and Wendy’s.Discussions on future trips, new grevilleas etc.

TuesdayWorking Bee at Neil’s.Cutting collection.

Illawarra Grevillea ParkOPEN DAYS 2005

April, Sat 23 & Sun 24April, Sat 30 & May, Sun 1

July, Sat 23 & Sun 24July, Sat 30 & Sun 31

September, Sat 24 & Sun 25October, Sat 1 & Sun 2

Each year the Park is open on the last fullweekend in April, first weekend of May, lasttwo full weekends in July, last weekend inSeptember and first weekend in October.

LocationThe Park is located at the rear of Bulli

Showground, Princess Highway, Bulli. (Turnat the Woonona-Bulli Sports Club).

Admission$4 adults, children accompanied by

adults are free.

Barbeque and picnis facilities availableBring your lunch and make it a family day!

Special openings for groupsSpecial openings for tour groups

(such as bus tours by Garden Clubs)can be arranged

The park is open from 10am to 4pm.For more information email at

[email protected]

Hi all

Welcome to another year of grevillea growing.We are still looking for a name for thenewsletter. I have a couple of ideas but I wouldlike to spread the net further. I have decided tohold a bit of a contest. Send in your ideas andsuggestions to me via email or letter. The StudyGroup will give you five years free membership.Now that’s an offer that is bound to get yourbrains ticking is it not? Entries close at theend of June.

I am looking forward to our plant sale this year(see page 4). I have spent a great deal of timeorganising a range of interesting plants. DonBurke has agreed to open proceedings againand some of the most knowledgeable peoplefrom Queensland (Merv Hodge) and Victoria(Neil Marriott) will be there to provideassistance. If any other interstate members willbe coming to help, contact me as there mightbe some local accommodation available.Please note that the date is April 9 & 10. I hadplanned it for later in the month but it clashedwith an interstate propagation conference thatmany of the nurserymen wanted to attend.

This year the major floral display (we have lostour helper, June Brooks, who is unable to assistany longer) will be a display of historicalmemorabilia associated with the Flindersexpedition to Australia. Ray Brown will bemounting this exhibition and it should be mostinteresting. This will be in addition to all thedisplays of Grevillea.

We have some really interesting plants for salethat cannot be obtained elsewhere. I havespent weeks sourcing them through variouscatalogues, local and interstate. One of themost interesting is Hymenosporum flavum‘Gold Nugget’. I saw this plant on a recent visitwith Don Burke. It only grows to 0.5–1m tall. Ithas beautiful foliage and yellow scentedflowers in spring. It makes an excellent pottedor garden specimen and is hardy. Keep it awayfrom snails though. We also have a range of theAcacia cognata cultivars, including ‘Green Mist’,‘Limelight’, ‘Copper Tips’ and ‘Bower Beauty’.


Peter Olde

Some of the new-release Grevillea cultivars willalso be available including some of the newCoastal series. We will have ‘Coastal Sunset’,‘Coastal Twilight’, ‘Coastal Prestige’ *NEWRELEASE, ‘Molly’, ‘Flamingo’, ‘Peaches andCream’ , ‘Strawberry Sundae’, ‘Autumn Waterfall’,‘Honeybird Pink’. All of these will be available inlimited quantities, in addition to some of yourfavourites both old and new. There will also bean extremely interesting and wide range ofGrevillea species and grafted plants availablewhich we have never had before.

A catalogue of the incredible range of plantsthat have been sourced for the sale will beavailable to download from our website athttp://users.bigpond.net.au/macarthuraps/grevillea%20study%20group.html at the endof March. Obviously there will be some lastminute additions. Another feature of the salethis year is that you can place orders for plantswhich will be filled from what is left after thesale ends. We will also order plants in, ifavailable, to fill the order where possible.

During the year, the Grevillea SG paid me$3,173.56 which represents the cost of fuel andvehicle service to Western Australia in 2004(Full report in future newsletter). This was apre-approved expenditure and financed a veryimportant trip which yielded at least one newtaxon and enabled me to finally clarify some ofthe difficult areas I was experiencing in thetaxonomy of Grevillea anethifolia.

Neil and I have finally started to write a book onthe Grevillea cultivars and hybrids. This will beavailable hopefully in 2006. If you think someGrevillea species are endangered, somehybrids are extinct as far as I can tell. We willpublish a list in the next newsletter of the oneswe are experiencing difficulty in locating.

Until then, happy growing, Peter.


Autumn Plant Sale 2005Mt Annan Botanic Garden

Mt Annan Drive, Mt Annan.*The entrance is well signposted off Narellan Rd and the

South-western Freeway between Campbelltown and Camden.Bus from Campbelltown. Entry Fee is $4.40 per person.

Saturday 9 April 10am to 4pmSunday 10 April 10am to 4pm

Featuring a Display of historic and modern memorabilia associatedwith the Flinders Expedition of Discovery to Australia 1801–1803,

with Robert Brown and Ferdinand Bauer.

Come and meet Don Burke on Sunday 12 noonExpert advice from Merv Hodge, Neil Marriott, Ray Brown, David Shiells.

New Release Plants – be early

- Hymenosporum flavum ‘Gold Nugget’ Native Frangipanni: grows to 1 m. Beautiful foliage,delicious perfumed yellow flowers in spring, ideal for a potted specimen, tolerates shade.

- Eucalyptus ‘Summer Red’: magnificent all-over display of red, spectacular small tree.- Correa ‘Federation Bells’: gorgeous plant to 1m.- Grevillea ‘Peaches and Cream’: brilliant low shrub with brignt cream flowers ageing pink.- Grevillea ‘Autumn Waterfall’: low cascading shrub with orange flowers.- Grevillea ‘Pink Midget’: new from Merv Hodge – great plant for a small place, pink flowers all year.- Grevillea ‘Coastal Prestige’: new release – shrub to 2 m with rosy pink flowers.- Grevillea ‘Molly’: a Robyn Gordon look a-like but with broad leaves and masses of terminal flowers.- Grevillea ‘Amy Lou’: lovely orange-pink flowers all year.

Also available in limited quantities- Grevillea ‘Coastal Sunset’: bright tangerine flowers, Grevillea ‘Coastal Twilight’: ‘TerraCotta’

flowers. Grevillea ‘ Golden Yul-lo’: gold flowers. Telopea ‘Wirrimbirra White’: the white waratah.

- Largest Range of Native plants for sale – tumblers from $4 . - Unusual species – Rare plants – Old favourites and new-release hybrids. - Extensive range of Grafted grevilleas and other genera specially propagated for the show. - Landscape plants – Cold Climate Plants – Rainforest plants – Ferns – Native grasses –

Native orchids – Ground cover and rockery plants – Local and Indigenous plants –Interstate & Local Specialist Nurseries from ACT, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia.

- Cut Flowers – Garden Clinic – OUTDOOR Garden display – INDOOR Static & InteractiveDisplays – Floral Display – Guided Walks around Mt Annan Botanic Garden.

- Workshops and slide-illustrated talks.- Family BBQ and refreshments available.

Sponsored by: The Grevillea Study Group of the Australian Plants SocietyP.O. Box 275 Penshurst N.S.W. 2222 Phone: (02) 4659 6598

All profits raised are used for scientific research or horticultural purposes.

subsp. brevistyla. This species occurs wherefires are unlikely to be common, however thesort of conditions required for recruitmentevents are unknown. However, seedlings ofGrevillea montis-cole subsp. brevistyla wereobserved on Mt Langi Ghiran in 2002(J. Downe, pers. obs.), suggesting this speciesmay persist without fire. However, the long-term effects of lack of fire on vegetationcommunity structure, and therefore habitat forthis species are unknown.

Currently threatened by Cinnamon Fungus,and potentially threatened by accidentaldamage from recreational users of the park,inappropriate fire regimes and native herbivorebrowsing. As a result it is suggested that as thistaxa to the best of our knowledge occursnowhere else in the world, the site should beclosed to hang gliders and ALL researchersattending the site should undergo shoesterilisation before entering the area.

Recovery actions and performance criteria

- Acquire baseline population data by conductingdetailed field and desk top surveys including(a) identification of the area and extent ofpopulations; (b) estimates of the number, sizeand structure of populations and (c) inferenceor estimation of population change.

- Evaluate current reproductive/regenerativestatus by determining seed bank status andlongevity, fecundity and recruitment levels.

- Determine seed germination requirements byconducting laboratory and field trials aimed toidentify key stimuli and determine stimuli forvegetative regeneration.

- Establish cultivated plants ex situ for inclusionin living collections to safeguard against anyunforeseen destruction of wild populations.

Post Script – As part of the recovery actions,Wendy and I were involved in a two day surveyof the Mt Langi Ghiran mountain top searchingfor new populations. We discovered a newcolony of approximately 1000+ plants severalhundred metres south of the known population.We will be visiting this site to monitor summersurvival during our Easter campout – shoesterilent will be provided for participants prior toentry to site.


Neil Marriott

Recovery Plan for Grevillea montis-colesubsp. brevistyla (Langi Ghiran Grevillea)2004 – 2008

Oberon Carter, Judy Downe and Anna H. Murphy– June 2003 Department of Sustainability andEnvironment, Heidelberg, Victoria.

Summary by Neil MarriottGrevillea montis-cole subsp. brevistyla is aprostrate to spreading shrub to c. 1m high.A shorter pistil length combined with shorterand broader leaves distinguishes thissubspecies from the type subsp. montis-cole(pistil 26–27.5mm long). Leaves showing somesecondary division and relatively large floralbracts distinguish Grevillea montis-cole fromother Victorian ‘holly-leaved’ Grevillea species(Walsh & Entwisle 1996). There are stronggrounds for raising the status of this taxon to aspecies in its own right (N Marriott pers. comm.).

Conservation status

Grevillea montis-cole subsp. brevistyla is listedas Vulnerable under the CommonwealthEnvironment Protection and BiodiversityConservation Act 1999, and is protected (butnot specifically listed) under the Victorian Floraand Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 (all VictorianGrevilleas are protected). There are approx. 25– 50 plants remaining in one wild population.

Distribution

Grevillea montis-cole subsp. brevistyla isconfined to a small area near the summit of MtLangi Ghiran, approximately 200 km north-westof Melbourne, in Victoria (Walsh & Enwisle 1996).

The single known population of Grevilleamontis-cole subsp. brevistyla occurs in openeucalypt woodland, among granite outcrops atc. 800 – 900 m altitude (Walsh & Entwisle 1996).Associated species include Leptospermumturbinatum, Eucalyptus goniocalyx, Astrolomahumifusum, Correa aemula, Dodonaea viscosasubsp. cuneata, Kunzea parvifolia, andAstrotricha sp. (RBG herbarium specimen notes).

Biology and ecology relevant tothreatening processes

There have been no targeted biological orecological studies of Grevillea montis-cole

SATURDAY:

South Warby Range –Old Glenrowan Recreation Reserve:

Just west of Glenrowan via Boundary Roadsouth of the Freeway in a cleared area aroundold tennis courts. Numerous healthy uprightbushes 2 x 2m or more some in full flower, largered/deep orange & yellow flower heads of up to30 flowers. A nearby population is known tohave specimens with pure yellow flowers.Associated species include Acacia paradoxa ,Hibbertia sericea, H. riparia, Dillwynia phylicoidesCalytrix tetragona (to 2m).

South Warby Range – Eastern Slopes –Sunrise Walking Track:

About 8 km north of Glenrowan, western end ofDeloro Road north of Taminack Gap Roadturnoff. 1–2m remnants and seedlings from aonce-vigorous population. Numerous stuntedshrubs to about 1m among Eucalpytus blakelyi,Acacia paradoxa, Brachyloma daphnoides,Calytrix tetragona.

Everton Reserve:

Along rough vehicle track. 1–1.5 x 1massociated with a remarkable Eucalpytuswoodland.

Whorouly: (led by David Shiells)

4 km west of Ovens Highway. Upright bushes to1.5 x 1m. on gravelly rise south and east ofroad. Handsome upright bushes to 1.5 x 1m inEucalpytus forest among Acacia verniciflua.

Beechworth – Malakoff Road:

In road side west of new Beechworth Prison.Broad-leafed low suckering plants 0.6–1 x1–1.5m and seedlings.

Beechworth Gorge Road:

Natural low suckering Grevillea rosmarinifolia xlanigera hybrids with blood-red flowers,previously cultivated by Neil Marriott. In lightrain and failing light we followed this scenicone-way drive, but were unable to relocate theplants. A more thorough search is warranted.


Max McDowell & John Gibbons (leader)

SUNDAY:

Old Highway near Winton power station:

Roadside stop to see Acacia aspera 1x1m.

Reef Hills Park:

Tall form 2–2.5 x 1m , similar to SamariaWells population with Helichrysum scorpioides,Calytrix tetragona, Hibbertia sericea, H. riparia,Dillwynia phylicoides, D. sp. aff. Sericea,Pultenaea procumbens, Westringia eremicola .

Warrenbayne:

On private bushland property of John Gibbons’brother-in-law, including some non-indigenousplanted species. Grevillea alpina 1.2–1.5 x1–1.2m some in flower. Dodonaea viscosa,Brachyloma daphnoides, Bursaria spinosa,Dillwynia juniperina (in flower), Hibbertiasericea and H. riparia, Persoonia rigida(vigorous form), Astroloma humifusum.

Violet Town – Harrys Creek Road:(led by David Shiells)

Beside roadside alongside cleared land about3km south-east of freeway. Remnant populationof three old dense shrubs 1–1.5 x 2m growingon steep bank facing east.

Grevillea alpina in NE Victoria

Populations visited on Vic Chapter excursion, August 14 – 15, 2004. Mostly not in flower.

continued

Grevillea alpina

Western Australia Grevillea researchtrip August – September 2003

Part 1

Background to the trip

In mid August 2003 Wendy and I headed off tothe West for our continued research into thegenus Grevillea. Peter Olde and I are currentlycompleting a major paper on the Manglesiasection ( our Group 1) of the genus. Peter couldnot make it to the West for this trip as he was inthe UK with his choir as well as carrying outresearch on the same group at a number of theEuropean herbaria including Kew.

The Manglesia section is typified by theirusually filamentous, symmetrical white flowersand is dominated by several large, closelyrelated but quite distinct groups including theGrevillea anethifolia group, the G. biternatagroup and the G paniculata group. For decadesthis section of the genus Grevillea has been allbut ignored by botanists, who generally lumpedanything superficially similar into one of theabove species. As a result the Perth herbaria inparticular has a large number of misidentifiedspecimens – for the last four years Peter and Ihave been systematically going through these,grouping them and separating out all thosespecies that are clearly new, or suspected newtaxa. These are then followed up with field workto check out the plants in the wild, collect morespecimens, determine the size and extent ofthe population etc.


Neil Marriott

Don McGillivray, in his revision in 1984 actuallydid a superb job in starting this informalseparation, but for some unknown reason neverwent on with the job – perhaps, like us he foundthat the group is far larger than is currentlyrealised and that many of the taxa arerepresented by insufficient herbarium material.However I suspect that he did not pick up anumber of the important character-states thatPeter and I have found that are so critical inseparating a number of superficially similarspecies. Characters such as ornamentation ofthe surface of the fruits, degree of exposure ofthe leaf lower lamina, attachment of the petioleonto the stem, location of the flowers beyond oramongst the foliage etc have proven to becritical. Populations that look superficiallysimilar or the same to the untrained eye may infact be quite separate taxa.

The first day

Having struggled across the Nullarbor fighting ahowling head wind we breathed a sigh of reliefwhen towards mid afternoon we reached theFraser Range to the east of Norseman. Herewe encountered our first white-floweredGrevillea – low rounded shrubs of Grevilleaanethifolia in massed flower in severallocations suckering right to the edge of thehighway. We collected specimens beforecontinuing on, finding further similar populationsgrowing in open mallee woodland at JimberlanaHill just to the east of Norseman. We noted that

continued

Grevilleas in Chiltern Water Trust Area,Barambogie Forrest: John Gibbons

Report on August 29 2004 field trip byWangaratta District Group led by Peter andJoan Gotham following a guide-map sketchedby Ray Purches.

We saw separate (and distinct) populationsof G. alpina and G. lanigera. We think there wasalso some G. rosmarinifolia present (smallalmost like a groundcover – we will go back andcheck on it).

In one location we found a mixed population ofall of the above plants with significanthybridisation. Some of the hybrids were up to1m high and very attractive, distinctly differentfrom the pure species, all growing on an areawhich had been disturbed by the laying of awater main in the forest. It seems likely that thedisturbance has stimulated germination ofotherwise dormant seeds and produced a smallbut interesting group of hybrids, all verydifferent, of high horticultural potential. Certainlyworthy of further investigation. I will try to find outmore on the history of the area from the DSE.

at both locations the grevilleas were growingwith Spinifex Grass Triodia scariosa – thisproved to be an almost foolproof indicator forthis grevillea at numerous sites throughout therest of the trip.

Next morning we headed north of Norsemanthrough the spectacular eucalypt woodlands ofthe Goldfields belt. On a laterite and sandy riseat Widgemooltha ?? we stopped for morningtea – this is an outlier of the vast sandplainsthat become commonplace to the west ofCoolgardie. At this site we found a multitudeof lovely plants in flower including at least7 grevilleas – G. acacioides, G. pterosperma,G. haplantha, G. hookeriana, G. cagiana,G. didymobotrya and G teretifolia.

We continued on through historic Coolgardiebefore stopping for a walk at the Yilgarn BarrierFence east of Southern Cross. Here we founda dense low heathy area with numerousplants of Grevillea levis – easily identified by acombination of characters including its smoothfruits, fine shortly divided leaves and glabrousbranchlets – and usually found growing near oron granite!

An interesting find here was an unusual form ofG. didymobotrya with short, silver leaves verysimilar to the beautiful form to the north ofBullfinch – this population probably warrantsrecognition as a new subspecies so theseplants here at the dingo fence will requirefurther investigation. Growing beneath thesegrevilleas was the beautiful Philotheca (synEriostemon) coccineus , with showy pink to redbell flowers. Also found here and common onmost gravely rises throughout this region wasGrevillea paradoxa.

Continuing west we stopped for lunch in abushland area just north of Morine Rock.Here we came upon beautiful little plants ofG. yorkrakinensis in full flower. This is adelightful little plant that warrants far greaterrecognition as a showy small garden plant –we need to find suitable rootstocks for thesesmall Western grevilleas – I have tried them onG. robusta and they never look good. Further onat Cunderdin we stopped at the cemetery tolook at the very rare G. roycei – sadly thispopulation is rapidly being swamped anddestroyed by a combination of weeds anddamage by workers at the cemetery! I amconstantly staggered every time I visit the West


to see gazetted rare and endangered plantsbeing wiped out by neglect and council workersdespite being protected by supposedly stronglegal legislation.

The Darling Range

Having caught up with fellow plant enthusiastand former leader of the Dryandra Study GroupKeith Alcock we spent a number of daysfurthering our research in the Perth Herbarium.While working on Grevillea hookeriana – ‘forestform’ I found a specimen from LuptonConservation Reserve near Brookton – this wasa new population for us so on the weekendKeith took us down to check it out. On the waywe came upon a population of a newsubspecies of G. monticola – another specieswe are working on! This population hasglabrous leaves and smaller white flowers – wefound this taxa to be quite widespreadthroughout the forest, with its showy curvedwhite flower racemes and attractive holly leaves.

We soon came upon the G. ‘hookeriana’population growing in an area where the forestsuddenly gave way to open heathy woodland.This taxa is quite different to its namesake fromthe sandplains for apart from growing in a quitedifferent climate, soils and vegetationcommunity it also is a smaller shrub, growing toaround 1–1.8m high and usually less than 1mwide. It has more spreading pinnatifid leavesand very showy flowers with a fawn to apricotperianth and black pistils which are slightlylonger than the ‘real’ G. hookeriana. Growing inthe same area were the beautiful Grevilleatenuiflora and G. monticola.

continued

Grevillea hookeriana, The Grevillea Book, Vol. 2 (P.Olde)

I had never been able to find the Tuttanningform of G. leptobotrys so Keith took us home viathis fascinating and botanically rich forestreserve to show us this spectaclar and distinctform. On Bandicoot Track we came uponG. integrifolia growing with Dryandra ferrugineassp. tutanningensis and numerous otherbeautiful sandy heathland plants. Further on wecame upon the G. leptobotrys – these werespreading low plants growing in shallow sandover laterite on the higher rises – drainagewould be quite perfect!

Out into the Sandplains

Leaving Perth and the Darling Range weheaded south-west in search of an unusualform of G. anethifolia with a hairy floral rachisthat had been collected on Eujinyn Rd NW ofBruce Rock. Shortly before we got to this sitewe located this taxon and found it to be quitewidespread throughout this area. Howeverapart from the hairy floral rachis it did notappear to be any different to the ‘normal’G. anethifolia. In a nearby area of Sheokewoodland we found an attractive population ofGrevillea umbellulata with its massed pinky-grey delightfully perfumed flowers. Nearbywere several low shrubs of Grevillea biformis.

On a granite outcrop to the SE of Jillakin RockEucalypt expert Ian Brooker collected specimen of G. anethifolia – our researchshowed this to be a new species, but despitethorough searches throughout the area on twotrips we have been unable to relocate thistaxon. While searching in mallee scrub onMallee Valley Rd we found beautiful pale pinkflowered forms of Grevillea stenophylla , whilein the open woodlands to the west of JillakinRock we found another form of Grevilleaanethifolia and beautiful low forms of Grevilleaumbellulata.

We camped at the base of Jillakin Rock – adelightful location with tables and fireplaces setamongst the most easterly population of JarrahEucalyptus marginata, surviving here due to theextra runoff at the base of the rock. After anexhilarating walk up over the rock in themorning we headed off south in search ofanother new form of G. anethifolia with distinctlyhairy bracts.


This had been collected growing nearNyabbing, but well before we reached our goalwe found this new taxon growing on Rabbit-Proof Fence Rd. The plants were dense androunded to around 1.5m and just coming intoflower. Continuing south we again locatedthis unusual grevillea growing with G. insignisssp insignis, G. umbellulata ssp acerosa,G. hookeriana – ‘Southern Race’ as well asnumerous Dryandra, Hakea etc in a beautifulnature reserve to the north of Nyabbing.

Into the wetter country

Continuing south-west we made for Beaufort onthe Albany Highway – just to the south of herePeter and I had stumbled on a new grevilleaspecies the year before, and Wendy and Iwanted to compare this population with whatappeared to be the same taxon collected by ValCrowley on the Arthur River further to the west.The Beaufort population that we are to callGrevillea imbricans ms due to its largeoverlapping floral bracts is a root-suckeringrounded shrub normally growing to around1.5m. We found it growing in open dampheathland in white sand. Arriving at the ArthurRiver bridge we were amazed to find that theGrevillea here was the dominant plant growingin riparian Eucalypt woodland. They were largeand spreading shrubs to 3m x 4m with massesof extremely prominent white bracted flowerbuds unlike any other grevillea I have ever seen– the buds made the bushes look like they werefull of white furry caterpillars! These opened tolong racemes of lacy white flowers. Unlike theBeaufort population these on the Arthur Riverreproduced entirely by seed. Clearly there aresufficient characters to describe this grevilleaas a new taxon, probably a subspecies ofG. imbricans.

Growing nearby was an extremely beautiful andunusual dwarf acacia growing amongsttetratheca’s and Semaphore Sedge. Theacacia’s grew to 0.4m with massed erectleafless stems totally covered in superb yellowbracted flowers. It would make a wonderfulsmall garden plant, but unfortunately materialsent back failed to propagate.

continued

We decided that it would be nice to have a lookaround the Stirling Range and so we drove upChester Pass Rd and spent the night in thecamping ground in the National Park. The nextmorning we headed down Stirling Drive to mapthe extent of another beautiful new grevillea inthe Manglesia group. This we are to callGrevillea pieronii ms in honour of MargaretPieroni, botanical artist in a wealth of WAbooks, floras and journals, leader of theDryandra Study Group and the discoverer ofnumerous new taxa particularly Dryandra – apoint that has failed to be recognised by othertaxonomists! We soon found the populationgrowing in winter-wet areas of the valley floor.They were in full flower and this made themeasy to plot their distribution. Although moreextensive than previously thought the entirepopulation still extended for less than 2 kmsand only several hundred metres wide. Thismakes the species quite rare and threatened –it is important that it be propagated and widelygrown to ensure its survival as the StirlingRange has lost a number of its localised plants,primarily due to excessive wildfires andCinnamon Fungus.

Further west along Stirling Drive we found abeautiful and distinct form of Grevillea pulchellawhich may well be a new subspecies. Theyproduced attractive small shrubs to 0.5m withmassed erect to spreading rich cream flowerspikes, and were found growing on ridge tops instony sandy loam. This is a most beautifulspecies but unfortunately has proven to berather short lived and temperamental undercultivation. This is another of the Western dwarfspecies that requires a suitable root stock forgrafting – an excellent project for members ofthe Study Group.

Albany and the south coast

A most distinct new Grevillea species originallycollected by the late Ken Newbey at BoatHarbour in the 1970’s and again by a J Mercerat Cheyne Bay in the 1990’s, both of whichwere incorrectly identified as G. paniculata hadeluded Peter and me despite concertedsearches over several trips. However Wendyand I decided on another approach – we calledin at Albany on good friends Nathan McQuoidand Keith Bradbey who work for GreeningAustralia and the Gondwana Link Project andtold them about our elusive grevillea. It turned


out that J Mercer was a staff member with Keithand Nathan. Nathan gave Jack Mercer a calland within 10 minutes we were talking with himand planning a trip out to Cheyne Bay torelocate the new grevillea. Jack thought hecould remember collecting it during flora surveyshe carried out in the Cheyne Bay region in1993??? All that would be needed would be togo back to the same transect line and we wouldbe sure to find it. It sounded so easy!!

Early the next morning we met Jack andheaded off in his 4WD – we had budgeted onhiring one but Jack insisted on taking us in his.When we got to the site I’m glad we did for thetrack in went over several extremely steep andrough limestone headlands. However Jackcarefully picked his way over them and beforelong we were close to our destination. This areais extremely isolated and also extremelybeautiful. It would immediately be made into anational park in any other state, as the soils arequite diverse, with acid sands and spongeliteridges interspersed with limestone outcrops,estuarine inlets and occasional freshwaterstreams running down to a spectacular, ruggedand beautiful coastline. Setting this scenery offis a vast array of showy and often unusual andrare plants.

Leaving the car where the track eventuallybecame too eroded we walked the last fewkilometres through magnificent coastal heathland– where it changed to low mallee/heath webegan our search for Jack’s elusive grevillea.However despite the three of us thoroughlyscouring the area we failed to relocate it,although I did get some fabulous views of theextremely elusive Western Whipbird!! We alsofound an unusual broad-leaved form ofGrevillea nudiflora which was extensivethroughout the area.

Grevillea pulchella subsp. puchella,The Grevillea Book, Vol. 3 (N.Marriott)

A short history of a pioneeringAustralian Plant enthusiast – Part Twocontinued from GSG Newsletter 69

In 1947, Bill bought two acres on Brewer’s Hill,just out of Maffra, where he built a house,married Norah Linton in July of that year, andbegan to establish his Clearview Nursery. At theend of the block by the irrigation channel hebuilt his honey processing sheds, and betweenthose and the house, erected his glass andshade houses. It was also in 1947 that he metthe botanist Jean Galbraith, with whom heenjoyed a close association for the rest of hislife. Plant specimens which Bill collected weresent to Jean for identification and forwardingto higher authority. Although he accumulateda large library of plant books over the years,he credited Jean’s field guides, plus his ownpowers of observation for most of hisknowledge of botany and native flora.


Copyright D J Fraser 2003

Bill was now able to start propagating andexperimenting in earnest, and soon wasachieving results which were formerly thoughtimpossible, for example growing selected formsof Corymbia (formerly Eucalyptus) ficifolia fromcuttings. Always happy to share his knowledge,his method was published in Your Gardenmagazine in December 1958, where it was readby Russian botanists who contacted him fordetails, as a result of which, Eucalypts weresuccessfully cutting-grown in Russia.

In 1944 Bill heard of George Althofer, obtainedhis catalogue, and corresponded with him for15 years before actually meeting him. In 1947,George’s Burrendong Arboretum was almostdestroyed by floods, and suffered another verywet year in 1948. Bill propagated and senthundreds of plants to George to help re-establish the Arboretum, and continued to do sotill the end of his life. He also contributed plantsto several other arboretums, and established onewhich bears his name at the Boisdale school.

continued

Fearing we were to be defeated again wereluctantly began to head back to the car.Passing a high ridge to the north of the trackJack suddenly remembered that he hadcollected an unusual plant up on the ridge – thissounded most promising so off we headed,Jack heading one direction and me anotherwhile Wendy went in search of an injured emuchick we had seen earlier. Heading straight upthe hill I pushed through a thicket of pricklyhakeas and dryandra’s and suddenly therebefore me was the new grevillea – a superbdense small dome with massed erect spikes ofsoft cream flowers standing proudly above thefoliage. I could not believe we had finally foundit after all these years of searching. I yelled outto the others who came running.

We agreed that all the effort was worth it for thisnew grevillea was unlike any other – it hadamazing foliage, deeply divided into threeswhich bent more or less at right angles to thepetiole. These three lobes then divided againinto threes, again at right angles creating analmost perfect hexagon. These locked into

each other to create a dense tangle of foliage –quite reminiscent of the habit of Grevilleaintricata but on a miniature scale. The flowerswere arranged in attractive upright racemesand changed from delicate soft pinkish-apricotin bud to creamy-white when fully out. Theshrubs were growing in an open rocky patch onthe edge of a spongelite terrace – a strange,lightweight rock made of fossilised sponges.

After collecting specimens, recording the GPSlocation, associated vegetation and aspect etcwe continued to scour the ridge for furtherspecimens – despite a thorough search we onlyfound 10 plants, all growing along the sameterrace. Subsequent searches and discussionswith Jack Mercer since then have revealed thatthe grevillea is confined to sand pockets in thespongelite ridges. This may allow us todiscover the species growing in the same soilson other ridges throughout the district. Howeverit appears that it will always be an extremelyrare and localised plant. In recognition of all thework that Jack has done for this species we aregoing to call it Grevillea merceri ms in his honour.

Also bearing his name is Banksia canei , namedin his honour by the late Jim Willis, theVictorian Government Botanist. (see below).Bill also enjoyed a good relationship with Jim,and with a quiet grin confessed that he used toargue with him. Realising that this Banksia wasdifferent, Bill collected specimen material forJim, and the new species was eventuallydescribed and named. It was only one of manyundescribed plants, and new records for thestate found by Bill Cane. Many new plants wereintroduced into the nursery trade by Bill, bothmanipulated hybrids, and naturally superior,variegated, or unique colour forms of speciesfound in the bush and propagated fromcuttings, an art he perfected by constantexperimentation. Using his unique methods hewas able to strike cuttings of notoriouslydifficult plants which defeated the efforts ofothers. Typical of these were the Persoonias ,his last passion, and his collection containedspecies from all over Australia. He used to growPersoonia chamaepeuce to order because ofthe perceived difficulty in striking cuttings. Hissecret was quite simple, take the cuttings froma dense part of the plant where the stems wereblanched and tender. Another instance of hisskill back in the 1950s, was striking cuttings ofthe Blue Tinsel Lily in two weeks, after beingtold it was impossible. A very modest man, heonly tagged his own plants with the Clearviewname under pressure from his family, his mainemphasis was always to promote the growingof Australian plants, and to preserve themeither in the wild, sometimes by replanting, or ingardens and arboretums. I was with Bill whenhe took plants of a semi double form ofPhilotheca myoporoides to replant on a ridgeabove the Insolvent Track north of Maffra, aftera Forest Commission burn off caused a largeburning Eucalyptus sieberi, or Silver-top to fallon the original plant with fatal consequences.He knew the burn off had taken place, and wentstraight up to check on what was one of hisspecial plants.

Some of his plants are Correa Clearview Giant,Leptospermum Clearview Fairy, the ClearviewGrevilleas ‘David’, ‘John’ and ‘Robin’, andGrevillea ‘Crosbie Morrison’. He wasapparently more stubborn with his hybrid


Crowea which was known in the trade asCane’s hybrid, and the double form ofPhilotheca verrucosa, which he found nearHeyfield, was always referred to simply as theHeyfield Double Wax. Gaining personal kudoswas never in the picture with Bill.

With Arthur Swaby, Bill was at the forefront ofmoves to establish the Society for GrowingAustralian Plants. In the early years heregularly travelled to Melbourne to attendmeetings, sometimes as often as once a week,and also spoke at meetings in Sydney, and inWestern Australia, while over there oncollecting trips. Bill considered the part heplayed to be his main achievement, and inrecognition of his services he was made a lifemember.

In 1985 Bill became ill, and was diagnosed witha terminal illness. A surgical procedure gavehim an extra 12 months, and typically, he usedthis time to travel and collect, propagate, andsend to Burrendong, as many endangeredplants as possible, for he believed that no plantis safe in the wild. I enjoyed several field tripswith Bill, and on one into the Moroka Gorge insearch of a pink flowered form of Zieria robusta ,we found Persoonia asperula, which has a verylimited occurrence in this area. I also had thegreat pleasure of taking him on his last two fieldtrips, to Mount Elizabeth north of Bruthen, andThe Watchtower, high above the Moroka, tocollect a few last plant species for George.

Bill Cane passed away in the Maffra DistrictHospital on the eighteenth of January 1987,and lies in the Maffra Lawn Cemetery, under aplaque adorned with Corymbia ficifolia.

Acknowledgement: Much of the information inthis account of Bill’s life comes from a tapedinterview with Bill made by the late JohnNicholls of Maffra, a retired teacher and keengardener. I think John would approve of meusing it in this way to to place an account of thisremarkable man’s life and achievements beforea wider audience.

continued

The following was written by the late J H Willis,and was taken from a photocopy in mypossession of an article which I believe wasprinted in an SGAP publication.

Bill Cane and his Banksia Canei.

I first met Bill Cane in the 1940s, at the NationalHerbarium of Victoria where he was anoccasional country visitor, always bringingsome plant of interest for inspection.

He once mentioned that he’d seen specimensof Hairy Boronia (Boronia pilosa) ten feet inheight near Bengworden, south-east ofBairnsdale, Intimating that we knew thisheathland species only as a low bush up toknee-height, it was tactfully suggested thatperhaps he was confusing it with some othertaller plant at Bengworden, but Bill stuck tohis guns.

A few weeks later, herbarium staff were amazedto see, through their library windows, whatappeared to be an uprooted tree moving slowlyof its own accord across the Domain lawns –one recalled the Shakespearean episode ofMacbeth’s Birnam Wood ‘removing toDunsinane’. In truth, it was tiny Bill Canecarrying, and quite obscured by, an enormousten-foot specimen of undoubted Boronia pilosa,thereby proving his point! How he evermanoeuvred it into a Melbourne tram remainsa mystery.

Bill delighted in refuting popular tradition thatthis or that plant could not be cultivated. Fewgardeners have essayed to grow nativecherries (Exocarpos spp.) because of their part-parasitic habits; yet I have a magnificent Cherry40 ft tall that began as a tiny seedling, in Bill’s‘Clearview’ nursery at Maffra. As an apiarist hesupplied us for years with delicious Yellow Boxhoney from his local hives.

Throughout eastern Victoria, Bill Cane wasconstantly on the lookout for ornamental nativeplants to enhance the garden. Those havingunusual forms, – variegated foliage, deviantflower colours, superior blooms etc, wereintroduced into his nursery from cuttings, andhe also collected much seed for propagation.In his wanderings among the mountains, Bill


made several new records for Victoria (e.g.Eriostemon virgatus at Mt. Kaye) andextensions to the known range of other plants.

Twenty years ago it was my pleasure to name aremarkable and undescribed Banksia speciesin honour of this enthusiastic, tough andnuggety, lovable plantsman; the formaldescription of Banksia canei appeared inMelbourne Herbarium’s journal Muelleria Vol 1,pp 118 –120. (July 1967)

Photograph: This photo was taken by PeterMadden of Maffra, on a plant trip to the LittleRiver Gorge in East Gippsland, and shows Billgazing at the cliffs, doubtless wondering whatnew or rare plants are growing among thecrags. I had noted a huge plant of Persooniaconfertiflora while taking part in an SESexercise, and we took Bill up to see it. I had alsocollected specimens of a possible undescribedBaeckea in the gorge, and along the rim whereBill is standing, grows Eucalyptus saxitilis,which had recently been noted for the area.


Financial Report – February 2005

Income

Subscriptions $290.00Plants 650.00Interest 231.75Donations 10.00

$905.93

Expenditure

Newsletter Publishing $240.00Postage 147.10Printing 165.00Stationery 49.25Merchant card fees 44.00WA Field Trip 3,173.56

$3,818.91

$10,441.89 in Interest Bearing Deposit tillJuly 2005.

Balance in Current Account as at 22/02/05is $6,453.64

Balance in Business Cheque Account as at26/01/05 is $10,882.43

Office BearersLeaderPeter Olde138 Fowler Rd, Illawong 2234Phone (02) 9543 2242Email [email protected]

Treasurer and Newsletter EditorChristine GuthriePO Box 275, Penshurst 2222Phone / Fax (02) 9579 4093

Curator of Living CollectionNeil MarriottPO Box 107, Stawell 3380 Vic

Curator of Grevillea Park BulliRay Brown29 Gwythir Avenue, Bulli 2516Phone (02) 4284 9216

Curator of Seed BankMatt Hurst13 Urana Street, Wagga Wagga 2650 NSWPhone (02) 6925 1273

If a cross appears in the box, your subscriptionof $5.00 is due.Please send to the Treasurer, ChristineGuthrie, PO Box 275, Penshurst 2222.Please make all cheques payable to theGrevillea Study Group.

2004 2005

If a cross appears in both boxesthis will be your last newsletter.

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This email group was begun by John and RuthSparrow from Queensland. Free membership.

To subscribe, go to groups.yahoo.com and register,using the cyber-form provided. You must provide auser name and password as well as your emailaddress to enable continuing access to the sitewhich houses all emails and discussions to date.

You will receive a confirming email back andthen you are able to access the site whereinyou can select the groups to which you wouldlike to subscribe. In this case search for‘grevilleas’ and then subscribe.

Following this you will receive the latest emailsregularly in your email to which you canrespond. This is a good way to encourage newgrowers and those interested in the genus.

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Documents

Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plantsanpsa.org.au/grevSG/grev70.pdf · eat/share, grog, camping gear/linen etc. ACCOMMODATION: Stawell Park Caravan Park phone (03)