Happy New Year! I can not believe how quickly 2019 flew by and how little time I felt I had to contribute to things outside of my work. My work life balance has certainly had a huge shift leaving me with very little time to take a breath and enjoy some hobbies… Not that I am complaining, but this year I really want to take more time for myself. So to kick start the new year, the new decade, I travelled out to Baw Baw alpine village in search of the native wildflowers.
Only after a few minutes of walking up the grasslands I came across hundreds of these flower towers which stood out against the vivid green. My first find was the vibrant pink blooms of Stylidium graminifolium, which is found from the coast to the alpine areas of Victoria and NSW. This is a tufted, grass-like plant which grows in small clumps. The foliage is roughly 10-20cm long and the flowers emerge on long stems. Each flower is made up of 5 petals and is fused into a column fashion.
How stunning are these golden flowers on the Pultenaea gunnii. This plant is nicknamed the Golden Bush-Pea and is apart of the FABACEAE plant family. It is found growing wild throughout the whole of Gippsland area and selected areas of Victoria. It is a medium size shrub growing to 2 metres tall and wide.
Viola hederacea is a beautiful dainty plant which is communally found all throughout Victoria. It is easy to overlook this plant as it is literally under our noses for sale to purchase from almost every garden centre throughout the state. However, when you stumble across it growing in its natural habitat you can’t help but fall in love with this plant and give it your full attention. Found in the VIOLACEAE plant family this is a Stoloniferous perennial.
There were many other flowers I came across but… I have yet to do some research to identify them. I will be looking to take part in a wildflower tour in the near future, which I look forward to learning more about the native flora in the national forest.
Until next time happy gardening!
By Bonnie-Marie Hibbs
©BMHPhotographyTheGardener’sNotebook2020
2 comments
Such delicate pretty colours, even in drought I am finding tiny little wild flowers on our property. Great to see your blog again. Merry Merry new year to you & your fam.
It is amazing what emerges even in the toughest of conditions!