blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

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blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby polas » Thu 28 Oct, 2021 9:58 am

Hi,
I encountered those plants recently. They have a very strong smell and are reaching 2m in height. What are they? I have never seen them before. Does anyone know? So far google gave me no real answers.
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polas
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Re: blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby michael_p » Thu 28 Oct, 2021 10:19 am

No idea but it does have a wild tobacco (https://weeds.dpi.nsw.gov.au/Weeds/TobaccoBush) look about it.
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Re: blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby polas » Thu 28 Oct, 2021 11:14 am

michael_p wrote:No idea but it does have a wild tobacco (https://weeds.dpi.nsw.gov.au/Weeds/TobaccoBush) look about it.


that was my first guess as this grows only next to an old coal mine and maybe the workers planted it nearby. It has an incredibly powerful scent though (the leaves).
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Re: blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby tom_brennan » Thu 28 Oct, 2021 3:04 pm

Most likely Calomeria amaranthoides (Incense Plant).
https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi- ... ranthoides

Native colonising species, all over the place post the fires.
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Re: blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby polas » Thu 28 Oct, 2021 4:48 pm

tom_brennan wrote:Most likely Calomeria amaranthoides (Incense Plant).
https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi- ... ranthoides

Native colonising species, all over the place post the fires.


looks like a match! thank you Tom.
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Re: blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby tom_brennan » Sun 02 Jan, 2022 11:58 am

For those who are interested, the Incense Plants in Morton NP are all in flower now - it's quite impressive (less so when you have to wade through them)
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Re: blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby tom_brennan » Tue 04 Jan, 2022 11:33 am

Interestingly, Incense Plants are biennials.

Since they popped up mid 2020, post the fires, and are in flower at the moment, there may be a massive die-off this winter?
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Re: blue mountains, citrus smelling plant

Postby Hughmac » Fri 07 Jan, 2022 8:41 am

They are growing in profusion in moist, sheltered parts of Starlight's Trail too. I've been waking this district for 30 years, and been through plenty of recent fire grounds over that time, but have never seen them growing anything like they are at present. Their current dominance is astonishing, although probably related to the amount of rain we have experienced since the fires as they seem to favour moist conditions. They are clearly going to produce a massive seed bank for the next fire event.
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