Bushwalk Australia

Hello everybody!

I have a question, as we all have the scientific names of some of our lovely plants depending on how many posts we have done on this forum, I was wondering what your favourite native/endemic plant is?

Mine is the King Billy Pine (athrotaxis selaginoides). Pencil Pine does come very very close too!

I wonder if anyone will suggest cutting grass? Or Scoparia.

north-north-west wrote:I wonder if anyone will suggest cutting grass? Or Scoparia.

Only a cynic like you why do you need to be so negative all the time you are still too young to be a grumpy old woman ,did someone steal your scone or what ?
corvus

north-north-west wrote:I wonder if anyone will suggest cutting grass? Or Scoparia.

Oh I don't know, Scoparia can be very nice in bloom! So pretty!

north-north-west wrote:I wonder if anyone will suggest cutting grass? Or Scoparia.

Oh I don't know, Scoparia can be very nice in bloom! So pretty!

north-north-west wrote:I wonder if anyone will suggest cutting grass? Or Scoparia.

I actually don't mind a bit of scoparia.... but only if it is covered in snow! It is a very useful plant I must add though. They have some of the best roots for hauling yourself up small cliffs and gullies, and they make for a handy abseil anchor

King Billy for me hands down!! It's always special to see a few Huons as well though.

ILUVSWTAS wrote:King Billy for me hands down!! It's always special to see a few Huons as well though.

I have a feeling our pines will be mentioned quite a few times

ILUVSWTAS wrote:King Billy for me hands down!!

Ditto, but I love Scoparia and Fagus for their seasonal thing. Also Pandani, like old dudes standing watch over the landscape, always make me think of the aboriginal people for some reason....

corby:
It's people being people that has made me so cynical while still so 'young'.

I really don't have one single favourite. Nothofagus (both kinds), Pandanus, E regnans, Snowgums, Ghost Gums, Prostanthera, native orchids, billy buttons, Banksias, Melaleucas, snowgrass and buttongrass, etc, etc, etc . . . it's all good. Except for *&%$#! cutting grass. THAT I can live without.

There is a wonderful looking Snow Gum near the track South of Waterfall Valley that I always pay homage too, it has a large limb that extends horizontally, looks wonderfull when wet. Pandani comes in 2nd, it would be nice to put a date & height next to a tiny seedling & keep an eye on the growth over the next few years.
Regards Overlandman

Cannot claim it as my favorite however the Xanthorroea australis that are in the Narwantapu NP coastal walk area are extraordinary considering there has not been a wild fire through there that I can remember in recent times.
corvus

Myrtle beech- fairy trees!

Tassie has so much unique flora, but for me the standout plant is Nothofagus gunnii simply because it is so unique. It's the only winter deciduous plant that is endemic to Australia. That makes it special, and it is a top tourist attraction to boot.

Yup, fagus for me, one of the oldest vascular species on earth and the original species of nothofagus.

Joel wrote:Yup, fagus for me, one of the oldest vascular species on earth and the original species of nothofagus.

. . . and me too for fagus. I look forward to the "turn of the fagus" every year

Fagus is nice to look at, but as an off track walker, It loses points as it's a REAL pain in the butt to try to push through.

The plants of Tas are one of the big draw cards for walking there.
I will add Gleichenia alpina [Coral Fern] and that conglomeration of plants that we call a cushion plant to the mix.
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=2125&p=38182&hilit=cushion+plant#p18088

ILUVSWTAS wrote:Fagus is nice to look at, but as an off track walker, It loses points as it's a REAL pain in the butt to try to push through.

It doesn't have the nick name Tangle-Foot for nothing! I know where you're coming from, it can be a bit of a pain when off track, a beautiful, colourful pain.

I have always liked Blandfordia especially when they grow out of cracks in rocks and Pandani for their surreal tropical look. All the earlier suggestions are also excellent (apart from cutting grass!)

Mark F wrote:I have always liked Blandfordia especially when they grow out of cracks in rocks and Pandani for their surreal tropical look. All the earlier suggestions are also excellent (apart from cutting grass!)

Blandfordia are very pretty! I have always loved the name, it makes me giggle. Bland that flower certainly is not!

I have successfully transplanted a couple of Dianella tasmanica and wonder how many more natives we could do this with ?
corvus

I planted some Daniella tasmanica at my front door and it turns out to have been the ideal position. They've completely taken over that part of the garden and I've transplanted a few elsewhere now.

I've also transplanted a few blackwoods from the side of the road where the council mower keeps mowing them down. They're now getting quite large and have started sending up shoots of their own which I'm trying to transplant this year too.

Similarly with the tea treas from the edge of the river. They're going berserk thought my sewerage irrigation garden beds and may end up taking over it completely.

corvus wrote: wonder how many more natives we could do this with ?
corvus

Quite a few as long as there not transplanted from National Parks

My neighbor had a Huon, King Billy and Celery top pine all in pots.. when he moved away he asked if i'd like them. I planted them soon after and they are thriving. Especially the Huon pine, it's growing quite fast!!

Son of a Beach wrote:I planted some Daniella tasmanica at my front door and it turns out to have been the ideal position. They've completely taken over that part of the garden and I've transplanted a few elsewhere now.

Same.. they really do well with good drainage. Ours are so healthy they are rare to flower. I had the idea that they might be a taste of bush tucker for the menu but i'm not sure what to serve them with, dog poo perhaps .. er..

I like banksias!!

Has anyone ever heard of somebody successfully growing Native cherry, exocarpos cupressiformis? I would be interested to hear how well it worked, if it worked!

bushwalker zane wrote:Has anyone ever heard of somebody successfully growing Native cherry, exocarpos cupressiformis? I would be interested to hear how well it worked, if it worked!

There is a tas native nursery in Ridgeway (10mins from Hobart) that has pretty much any Tas native you can think of, they will most likely have them.

Hmm, might check it out next time I'm down that way! I have heard they're hard to grow as they are a parasitic plant, so they need a host.

Mine is the Waratah, Telopea Truncata, wonderful in flower. Hard to grow from seed although I have a couple growing at home from Redbreast Nursery at Margate.