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Mulching Again!

© John Bottomley

The other day I spent a couple of hours spreading mulch on another section of the garden. This section is in a very sunny position, and as we are in the middle of summer, I thought it a good idea to plant some native bushes. The sun's rays beat down on that section of the garden for most of the day. You might well say, 'why not plant some tall trees to give some shade?' Not possible, there are some power lines to the house immediately above this section. Looking at a list of plants that might be suitable for that area, I picked out several that may survive the harsh conditions.

The first one I found was a Dryandra lindleyana, or Couch Honeypot. It is a prostrate undershrub that grows to approximately 50 cm (20"). It has ornamental flowers and foliage, and the saw-toothed leaves have white undersides. The heads of the flowers are sometimes hidden in the foliage and are of shades of gold through to a brown or a pink.

There are always some very interesting pieces of information one discovers when researching native Australian plants. In this case it was found that, marsupials such as the tiny Honey Possum (Tarsipes rostratus), are the ones who pollinate these flowers. Fruit may form, and if so it is quite possible that the tiny marsupial may still live in the area. The Honey Possum has a long pointed snout and a brush-tipped tongue, which are adaptations of their diet of nectar and pollen.

My other choice at this stage was the Verticordia densiflora, Compacted Featherflower. This is an erect shrub which grows to a height of about 1metre(3 feet) with crowded leaves. There are a lot of bright pale pink flowers that have flat heads; the base of the flowers consists of tufts of long soft hairs. The flowers are lightly perfumed and the plant produces them from November to January; it is possible if they are well cultivated to extend the flowering period to March.

There is always the possibility of treating this plant with smoked water or smoke tents which could end dormancy in some of the difficult to propagate plants in some of these verticordia species. It is said this technique has very important implications for a lot of endangered plants.

There is also Verticordii drummondii, Drummond's Feather Flower, to consider. This is a small shrub that grows to approximately 70 cms (28 inches) and has small, spreading, egg-shaped leaves (with the broader end uppermost). The plant has small, deep, pink flowers that nestle between dense terminal spikes. The plant begins to flower in January or February and finishes in April, sometimes in June.

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