Subscrip�ons are dueAll subscrip�ons are due for renewal on 1st July.

A renewal form is included with this edi�on ofKunzea. Please read it carefully and fill it all in.Make sure that your current email address isincluded so that membership records are kept upto date.

Payments can be made by cash or cheque atthe June mee�ng, or by EFT any �me. EFT detailsare on the membership renewal form. If you arenot sure how much you should pay, please phoneJan on 9893 4422.

Emeritus Professor Robert Kingundertook his ini�al studies inZoology and Botany at MelbourneUniversity, and spent almost 40years at the University of NewSouth Wales, Sydney, beforere�ring as Deputy Vice-Chancellorand Registrar. His research inmarine botany has included studieson the marine algae associated

with mangroves: taxonomy and systema�cs,distribu�on, and ecology with an emphasis onmechanisms of salinity tolerance.

The term mangrove refers to both an unusual groupof essen�ally tropical plants and the communi�es theyform. There is only one mangrove species in Victorian,but in northern Australia there is a rich and variedcollec�on of genera and species all coping with anenvironment that appears unfriendly to floweringplants. Mangroves exhibit a range of adapta�onsenabling them to cope in an environment with regularinunda�on, variable salinity, unstable sediments andwave ac�on. The term has no taxonomic significancebut is an ecological category of plants defined by achallenging environment. Mangroves occur in asurprising range of familiar plant families, and arerelated to many genera which are well known in ourtropical flora and also as garden plants.

Although we are not likely to growmangroves in ourown gardens, come along and hear all about thisfascina�ng group of plants.

June 2019

Friday Meeting Garden Visit21�� June at 8.00 pmMangroves

– tropical plants with a difference

Robert King

Friday mee�ngs are held at theAustralian Unity Hall8 Main St, Blackburn

near the Blackburn train sta�on

Sunday 23�� June at 2 pmWombolano Park, Ringwood East

Meet at the Rotherwood Avenue car park(Melway map 50 C10)

Wombolano Park in Ringwood East is located onCanterbury Road and occupies 7.5 ha (18 acres). TheAboriginal name Wombolano means love, pre�y, lovelybeau�ful.

We will gather in the car park and proceed to theplayground before we go on the walks. The playgroundhas a lawn area and adjacent public toilets. There is aFriends Group of the park and one of their members isgoing to meet and greet us.

The Sensory Trail starts at the Rotherwood Avenuecar park and leads through a wetland area. Seasonally-wet ponds can be viewed from several pla�orms alongthe trail.

You may need a warm coat and thermos! Contactdetails: Dallas Boulton 9729 1538.

Maroondah Display at APS YY Plant ExpoYarra Yarra group puts on a superb Plant Expo in

September each year. The theme this year will be“Small Plants”.

Maroondah group usually puts on a small display aspart of the Expo. We are asking for people to beinvolved in determining what the display should beand how to put it together. We will later ask for helpersto set up (Friday 13th September) and pull down thedisplay (Sunday 15th September).

Please contact Dallas Boulton with offers of help orsugges�ons, on bernard.boulton@bigpond.com or9729 1538.

Newsle�er Contribu�ons are WelcomeHow about telling us about your favourite plant, or

something that has recently happened in your garden, orsome more unusual plant that you came across.

Contact the Kunzea Contents Editor Sue Guymer on9872 3583 or aitchguy@gmail.com.

2 APS Maroondah Group – founded in 1966 Kunzea June 2019

Royce began growing hakeas at the sugges�on ofFred Rogers in the late 1960s when he was also invitedto a�end SGAP Maroondah (now APS Maroondah).Royce really took to the idea, growing 90 species in hisgarden in Montrose, sourcing plants from nurseriesincluding Austraflora which were mostly grown fromseeds. He also became leader of the Hakea Study Group,and created a collec�on of seeds from all over Australia,sourcing from Botanic Gardens, Burrendong Arboretum,members and from his own plants. When Royce andJeanne moved to Wartook, they loaded removalist vanswith many hundreds of po�ed hakeas.

Hakea is a genus of about 150 species (and about 20sub-species) of plants in the family Proteaceae. They areendemic to Australia, found in every state, with thehighest species diversity being found in the south westof WA. They are worth growing for their great range ofform, from trees to prostrate, their unusual foliage andseed shapes, and their o�en spectacular flowers, someof which are perfumed.

Hakeas in general are hardy and prove to be reliablein cul�va�on. They retain their seed which can becollected and germinated. Many have lignotubers, andcan be heavily pruned, and many can withstand frostand long dry periods. Royce men�oned his H. lissocarpafor example which thrives without water. Hakeas arewonderful bird a�racters both for food and shelter.

There are many low growing hakeas suitable for thesmall garden, some which may be worth trying in largecontainers. Royce recommends regular pruning tomaintain a good shape and to encourage be�erflowering.

HakeasRoyce Raleigh

Notes from the talk at the May mee�ngwri�en by Diane Hedin

Hakea bakeriana

Hakea circumulataHakea conchifolia

Hakea aculeata

Hakea platysperma

3APS Maroondah Group – founded in 1966Kunzea June 2019

Last year Royce and Jeanne’shakea collec�on consisted of morethan 100 species. Unfortunatelysome were lost over this very drysummer.

Royce presented an incrediblephoto collec�on of 95 differenthakeas, 90% of which were taken atWartook Gardens.

Thanks to Royce for a very in-forma�ve presenta�on, inspiring usto plant more hakeas.

Hakea archeoides

Hakea victoria

Hakea candolleana

Hakea pandanicarpa ssp crassifolia Hakea ilicifolia

Hakea tephrosperma

Hakea oleifolia Hakea orthorryncha ssp filiformis Hakea mul�lineata

Tips from Joe WilsonDepending on the compac�on

of your soils, Joe has found that it isbest to leave soil as undisturbed aspossible. This means resis�ng thetempta�on to rip soil, work it overor add much to it. If you do want toadd compost or mulch, he suggestsdoing so sparingly. In his garden, hehas found that this approach hasencouraged the emergence ofseedlings, including Flannel Flowers(memories of Peg McAllister).

Another �p is that many wa�lescan o�en be propagated fromcu�ngs. This method is easier andquicker than growing from seed,and ensures that the form of thepropagated plant is the same as theparent.

Knock knockWho’s there?BillBill who?Billardiera

– Frank O’Dea

Maroondah Commi�eeYour Maroondah Commi�ee is

elected at our Annual GeneralMee�ng which will be held inOctober.

This year there will be vacanciesarising at that �me, and we ask youall to consider whether you would bewilling to contribute towards theongoing vitality of our group byjoining the Commi�ee.

Commi�ee mee�ngs are heldonce each month, and provide agreat social occasion as well asa�ending to the business of theGroup.

Please contact Bill Aitchison on9872 3583 or aitchguy@gmail.com,or any other Commi�eeMember, formore details

4 APS Maroondah Group – founded in 1966 Kunzea June 2019

Member Profile – Chris and Steve FletcherChris Fletcher is well-known to us as the grower who

sells her plants at our monthly mee�ngs. But what dowe know of Chris outside Maroondah group?

Chris grew up in Prahran in a house with very li�legarden. She does remember liking gardening as a child,as her Mum loved gardening and Chris would takepieces off pelargoniums to take home to her. Sheworked for Crawford Produc�ons typing up scripts formany well-known programmes, including Division 4,Ryan, Matlock and Homicide.

She first got married in 1973 and moved into aminer’s co�age in Yarra Glen, and had her first twochildren - Rebecca and Jesse. The co�ageis about 120 years old, and Chris says itneeds work! There never seems to beenough money and �me availabletogether, to do the work.

She got hooked going to AustrafloraNursery. In the mid 1970s she joined theSociety for Growing Australian Plants(now APS), sent off for seed packets andstarted what was to become her career inpropaga�ng. Her first District Group wasSGAP Lilydale which was close to home.That group later folded, and then shejoined SGAP Maroondah.

During the mid to late 1980s Chris and Steve bothbecame involved in the Yarra Valley Tree Group, both asvolunteers and as Office Bearers. The Tree Group waspart of the early Landcare movement, and involvedmany from the farming and local community concernedwith land degrada�on issues, with a focus on indigenousvegeta�on on farms. Chris and Steve were involved inorganizing many Tree Group ac�vi�es, includingrevegeta�on, plant propaga�on, local seed collec�on,site visits, local plant iden�fica�on days and even acanoe trip down the Yarra River.

There were many revegeta�on projects undertakenduring the late 1980s and most of the 1990s in the YarraValley. Tarrawarra Abbey, Domaine Chandon, ChateauYering (back when it was a working farm and not a five-star hotel and the Yering Sta�on vineyard) and YarraGrange were just some the proper�es involved.Another project involved seed collec�on andpropaga�on of Eucalyptus crenulata (the Buxton Gumor Victorian Silver Gum) from a small remnant stand ona private property at Yering. The remaining trees werein a bad way and in decline as ca�le had been grazingaround them for many, many decades. The area wasfenced off to exclude the ca�le, and revegetated withstock propagated by Chris from the remaining adulttrees.

Also during this �me Chris was propaga�ng na�veand indigenous plants and selling them at local marketsand at the Melbourne Wildflower Show. Chris’spropaga�on methods were simple in that she had noheat mats and didn’t use any hormone roo�ng powder.Then she was offered work at a nearby na�ve nursery.This was Wyeena, run by Kahn and Julie Franke, whowere Maroondah members. Chris was hired and workedthere for 5 years.

Chris married Steve in 1991. He had always lovedna�ve plants, and had a na�ve garden in Bendigo wherehe lived. He worked at Telstra, and took a redundancypackage at 40, just in �me to look a�er their daughterSteph and dedicate �me to the Tree Group, and was acommi�ee member on the Melbourne WildflowerShow for about 3-4 years in the early 1990s.

In the mid 1990s, Roger Lord fromMelbourne Waterasked Chris to supply indigenous plants for streamsideplan�ngs in the local area. This led to contracts with thelocal shire, and Greening Australia. The business wasbooming. Chris had to hire staff. Their 1/3rd acre

property was becoming too cramped.Fortunately, their next-door neighbouroffered to let them use part of her blockwhich had a disused hot-house. Chrisand Steve repaired the hot-house, put inbenches and were soon producingabout 150,000 plants a year, mainly astube stock.

In the mean�me, Steve started hissecond career. Following on from hisLandcare endeavours he enrolled in aBush Management Course run by SaveThe Bush, and facilitated by ecologist

Lincoln Kern. This eventually led to work on a Save TheBush crew involved with environmental works aroundMelbourne.

Save The Bush somehow came under the Na�onalTrust, with Head Office in East Melbourne and space forworks equipment borrowed from the Yarra Bend ParkDepot. Eventually Steve started his own company whichcontracted its services of environmental weed controland revegeta�on to local government, MelbourneWater, VicRoads etc. O�en he was plan�ng the plantswhich Chris grew. Projects were many, includingrevegeta�on of the damage done up the MelbaHighway by the installa�on of the Goulburn Riverpipeline and along the Mullum Mullum Creek forMelbourne Water during the Eastlink construc�on atRingwood.

Chris will never forget her 60th birthday. Her familyhad organised a celebra�on and stay in a hotel inMelbourne. However, this turned out to be the sameday as Black Saturday when the bushfires tore throughthe Yarra Glen area! Steve drove her in to Melbournebut went home to protect the property, and severalguests also couldn’t go to the party as they weredefending their proper�es. Chris now realises that ittook Steve a long �me to recover a�er the bushfires. Inpar�cular, it was very depressing seeing the burnt-outareas all around Yarra Glen and beyond, where hiscompany had carried out many revegeta�on projectsthat had been heavily impacted by fire.

She is now semi-re�red, only producing as much asshe can manage on her own. She grows a wider varietyof Australian plants for her own interest now, as well ass�ll some indigenous species. She loves to go to the APSplant sales where she and Steve sell plants, as it is greatto catch up with people with a common passion, as wellas the people who are just discovering na�ve plants. �

5APS Maroondah Group – founded in 1966Kunzea June 2019

Wri�en up by Bill AitchisonSpecimen Table

Thanks to our presenters Peter Rogers and, special guest, Royce Raleigh.

Unfortunately nobody has yet offered totake on the task of wri�ng up the SpecimenTable from our Friday night mee�ngs forinclusion in this newsle�er. This may raise aques�on as to whether we can con�nue to havea specimen table write-up in Kunzea.

** STOP PRESS – SITUATION VACANT**

Eucalyptus leucoxylon – this is one that always looksgood in flower. Other eucalypts on the Table wereE. lunata (previously called E. 'Moon Lagoon', it grows3-5m high), E. macrantha (beau�ful buds and fruit),E. gillii (3-5m x 3-5m) and E. gregsoniana.Homoranthus darwinioides – this is a small shrubfrom NSW, quite hardy except Marilyn Bull noted thatrabbits are liking it at the moment.

Banksia bauri – a 3 metre banksia with large woollyflowers (3m long, 1.2m across). Named a�er botanicalar�st brothers Ferdinand and Franz Bauer. We also hadon the Table a number of different forms ofB. spinulosa (the variety is amazing).Bossiaea walkeri – Ray Turner brought this along.Peter recalled seeing it in the Fraser Range area of WAa few years ago,

Hakea scoparia – this is similar to H. invaginata, butcomes out earlier and does not always have the pinkthat H. invaginata has. Also on the Table wereH. laurina and H. 'Burrendong Beauty' (we were toldyears ago that this was a low growing plant but there aresome very big ones). Royce recalled collec�ng seed fromH. 'Burrendong Beauty' many years ago and no�ng thatthe seed produced plants of all shapes and sizes.

Acacia jibberdingensis – Royce said that this flowersnearly 12 months of the year at Wartook. Other acaciason the Table were A. beckleri (a paler colour thansome), A. fauntleroyi, A. suaveolens and a fine leafform of A. iteaphylla.Templetonia retusa – if you have gone across theNullarbor near Ceduna when these are in flower, theyare quite magnificent. Royce likes the upright form, butthere is also a low growing form which forms a lovelyplant. They grow especially well in alkaline soil.A couple of others on the Table were Dryandraquercifolia and Darwinia hypericifolia.

Homoranthus darwinioides Bossiaea walkeri

May “Harvest”

Hakea scoparia

She has inten�ons to put more �me into her owngarden, but it doesn’t seem to happen. She is also agreat animal lover and has a dog named Mia.

Chris says that she is not quite sure how all this cameabout – that a backyard hobby became a significantbusiness; it just sort of happened! This is a typically self-effacing comment from her.

Chris has met so many like-minded people throughAPS. Some have provided work opportuni�es, or plantmaterial, but mainly they have been great friends. Shegreatly appreciates the role that APS has played in herlife, just as we also appreciate her contribu�on.

Member Profile – con�nued

6 APS Maroondah Group – founded in 1966 Kunzea June 2019

We had a good a�endance on a lovely autumna�ernoon. We met at Frank’s garden first, where Franktold us some of its history (and some Knock Knock jokeswhich we share with you later). Joe Wilson, whocurrently helps maintain the garden, walked us around.Michael Cook, who did the maintenance before Joe,also answered some ques�ons.

Frank lives in one of a group of 8 units. Shortly a�erhe moved in in 1996, he met Paul Kennedy who wasthen a Maroondah group member, and was inspired toconvert the garden to na�ves. He gradually took overthe plan�ng and maintenance of the beds in front of

each unit, and thelarger garden bedacross the front ofthe property.

Gardens evolveover �me, andFrank likes to haveplants which flowerwell, so there iscon�nual renewalin the garden. Sinceour last visit in2011, a densebrush fence hasreplaced the pre-vious post-and-railfence, reducing theamount of sun tothe west-facingfront garden.

Plants in this area include Correa pulchella formsand C. alba ‘Western Pink Star’, Crowea exalata, brightyellow flowers on Hypocalymma xanthopetalum,H. linifolium, Eremophila sp ‘Kalgoolie’, various

E. maculata and E. glabra forms forms, Acacia pendula,A. craspedocarpa, A. chinchillensis and A. glaucoptera(broad leaf form), Billardiera bicolor (compact formgrowing as a low shrub), Templetonia retusa, Eucalyptuspreissiana smothered with seedpods from previousflowering, Hakea ‘Burrendong Beauty’, Spyridiumhalmaturinum, Maireana opposi�folia and a contortedAlyogyne huegelii (one of Frank’s early plan�ngs).

Plants in the beds up the driveway include Eremophilacalorhabdos, Eucalyptus pulverulenta ‘Baby Blue’,Eremophila oldfieldii, a few darwinias including Darwiniacollina and D. ‘Coolamon Pink’, Correa reflexa with verylarge, richly coloured bells (perhaps ‘Portland Giant’), agra�edGrevillea georgeana covered in large crimson andwhite flowers, Hardenbergia violacea covering a brickwall, Pimelea nivea, Hakea corymbosa (with very pricklynew growth), Xanthorrhoea ‘SuperGrass’, Pandoreajasminoides (on north-facing wall), and a suckering formof Banksia marginata with clear lemon flowers.

Then we moved on to Diane’s garden. This is muchyounger than Frank’s – about 4 years old. MereleWebb did the design for the garden, including decidingwhere the rocks should go. Peter Smith placed therocks (a�er he removed a panel of fencing to getaccess!). Diane did most of the plan�ng. She hasplanted out the nature strip, including indigenousspecies Pelargonium australe and Themeda triandra.There is quite a high fence around the property whichis on a street corner.

Diane’s original inten�on was to make a gardenusing indigenous plants only, but a�er seeing otherna�ve gardens and Australian plants from other areas,she decided to include plants from all over Australia.She takes the approach of fi�ng in as many plants aspossible.

The gate on the corner gives entry to a lovely privategarden. There had been a pond in this garden un�lrecently, when it was damaged by Diane’s ‘grand dog’.It has been transformed into an ephemeral watercoursethrough granite rocks. There is a bench seat in the back

Sue Guymer

May Garden VisitsIn May we visited two gardens in Box Hill belonging to Frank O’Dea and Diane Hedin.

Frank's Xanthorrhoea ‘Supergrass’ inflower. Photo: Bill Aitchison

Frank with Grevillea georgeana. Photo: Bill Aitchison

Diane's dry creek bed. Photo: Michael Cook

7APS Maroondah Group – founded in 1966Kunzea June 2019

corner by the pond which would be a lovely spot tocontemplate the garden. Plants in this garden includeGrevillea petrophiloides with a number of flowers justcoming out, Eremophila maculatawith flame orange-redflowers, Scaevola albida covered in mauve flowers,Gahnia radula, Acacia merinthophera and A. spectablis,MIcrolaena s�poides growing between the pavingstones, Grevillea lanigera and G. ‘Amethyst’, Eucalyptussaxa�lis (Suggan Buggan Mallee), Banksia ‘CherryCandles’, Chamelaucium ciliatum and lots of dianellas.Brachyscome mul�fida and Crowea exalata looked lovelygrowing together making a picture of mauve and richpink flowers. Croweas are seeding in the gravel mulch.

Our thanks to Frank, Joe, Michael, Diane, Merele andPeter for taking us through these two lovely gardens.

Merele, Diane and Peter. Photo: Bill AitchisonDiane's Banksia ‘Cherry Candles’. Photo: Bill Aitchison

Diane's garden seat. Photo: Michael Cook

Change in the garden can be planned, evolving or, inmy recent situa�on, sudden and unexpected. Last Augusta large Eucalyptus goniocalyx crashed to the ground.Fortunately, it only clipped the side of the house doingminor damage to gu�ering. The fall of the tree not onlycaused a loss of canopy, but eliminatedmuch canopy in itspath, as well as damage to smaller plants. Three arboriststook a day to reduce the tree tomany logs and a large pileof mulch. One of the arborists was studying furnituredesign at RMIT and offered tomakeme a rus�c seat, fromwhich I can now watch the sun set and have yetanother perspec�ve of the garden.

In the front part of garden, where the top of the treehad landed, I staked damaged plants and took somecu�ngs, mainly from croweas. Before any new plan�ng, Iadded compost to the soil and sawdust. I now had moresun, which gave me the opportunity to plant more sun-tolerant plants as opposed to theusual shade loving-plants.

In the front and side gardens, dendrobium orchids,previously sheltered by a large Coprosma quadrifida hadto be relocated, leaving the area open for new design andplan�ng. It is s�ll amazing to watch the progress ofrehabilita�on and regenera�on, especially the newgrowth on the Allocasuarina torulosa and A. li�oralis,Banksia spinulosa and B. integrifolia. The coprosma hassome new growth, but looks more dead than alive.However, a newly plantedHibber�a scandens is trailing itsway up the branches, and it will be interes�ng to see thedegree to which the coprosma will regenerate. A Hakea

decurrens was almost destroyed by the falling tree and Ipruned it to a remaining piece of trunk, and have justplanted two more to ensure food for the visi�ng Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoos.

Pterostylis nutanswere growing at the base of the fallentree and, amazingly, last month they appeared in front ofmy rus�c seat. I did not expect to ever see them again.

On reflec�on, I have learned much as a result of thefallen tree. Firstly, not rushing to remove damaged plants,then having �me to observe new condi�ons, especiallyjust before summer (very important). And finallyaccep�ng the change, which provides new opportuni�esfor ‘plo�ng and planning’, using plants propagated, andof course buying new ones.

[Maroondah group will be visi�ng Pam’s gardenon 25�� August.]

Pam YarraGardens are always evolving

Pam’s new rus�c seat with the Greenhoods in front.

Postal address: P.O. Box 33, Ringwood 3134Email: maroondah@apsvic.org.auNewsle�er contribu�ons:Contribu�ons for the July 2019 Newsle�er should be sent to

Sue Guymer (aitchguy@gmail.com) no later thanMonday 1st July 2019

Check out the Maroondah Group website ataustralianplantssoc.wix.com/maroondahMember page login: mrndh2016How about making a contribu�on to thewebsite?And have a look at the APS Vic website atwww.apsvic.org.au

Published by APS Maroondah Inc.Registra�on No. A0013122B

Australian Plants Society Maroondah Inc.

Upcoming EventsFriday Meetings Garden visits and activities

FNCV Botany group talksThird Thursday of the month – starts at 8 pm at FNCV Hall,

1 Gardenia Street, Blackburn (Melway 47 K10)18th July – John Eichler on ‘Rare Plants in Victoria’.

Plant sales22nd–23rd June – APS Ballarat Winter Flower Show,

Robert Clarke Centre, Ballarat Botanic Gardens,Gillies St, Ballarat. 10:30am–3:30pm

27th–28th July – Friends of Cranbourne RBGV,Cranbourne Botanic Gardens 10 am–4 pm(Melway 133 K10)

14th–15th September – APS Yarra Yarra Australian PlantsExpo. Eltham Community & Recep�on Centre,801 Main Rd, Eltham. 10am–4pm

Manningham Council EnvironmentSeminars

First Wednesday of the month – 7:20 pm at River View Room,Grand Hotel, Warrandyte (Melway M23 E12).

3rd July – Geoff Williams on ‘Understanding Rakali –Australia’s “O�er” ’.

ANPSA Events30th September – 4th October 2019:

ANPSA Na�onal Conference, Albany WA.

Commi�eeBruce Schroder President 9728 1342Bill Aitchison Vice President 9872 3583Peter Rogers Secretary 9801 6946Joe Wilson Treasurer 9812 0209Jan Nicholls Membership Secretary 9893 4422Sue Guymer Newsle�er Editor 9872 3583Graeme Nicholls Newsle�er produc�on 9893 4422Alison Rogers 9801 6946Barry Ellis 0403012109Dallas Boulton 9729 1538Debbie Jerkovic 9885 7276

21st JuneRobert King – Mangroves

19th JulyPeter Rogers – Visi�ng Cape York

16th AugustA B Bishop – Habitat gardens

20th SeptemberSean Spence – Droseras

18th OctoberAuc�on Night and AGM

15th NovemberMaree and Graham Goods –

Chasing Goodeniaceae

23rd June –Wombolano Park, Ringwood East

21st July – Jo and Richard Cameron garden,Ringwood East

25th August – Pam Yarra garden, Heathmont

22nd September –Wominjeka Reconcilia�on Garden,Glen Iris

20th October –Marilyn and Geoff Bull Garden,Montrose

17th November – Aitchison/Guymer Garden,Donvale

Vale Joan BarrettIt was sad to hear of the death of past Maroondah

member Joan Barre�. She had not been able to come toour mee�ngs in recent years as her health declined.Many of us will remember her cheery face and cheekysense of humour.

Our condolences to her friends and family.

On the Road to RecoveryBrian Snape has been undergoing radiotherapy

treatment for skin cancers (SCCs) on the side of his face.He has now completed this and is recovering well.

Slide ScreenDoes anybody have a pull-up slide screen thatthey no longer need and if so could you please

donate it to Dallas Boulton? Contact onbernard.boulton@bigpond.com or 9729 1538.