Your favourite native flower [Multiple photos]

[taswegian]

What’s your favourite native flower? And why?
For me here in Tasmania, there are a few choices. Blanfordia - Christmas Bells are a classic and a really magnificent display.
Down side is it’s not so easily found or accessible.
But then why not? It's worthy of exclusiveness, at times almost elusive.
They like moist places and a babbling highland stream is a favoured habitat that brings music to the ears adding to the visual splendour.

There are others that rank very high, some of our many little orchids. Masses of Bladderwort or Fairies’ Aprons (Utricularia dichotoma) dancing in the sun.

But the one I give my preference to is the simple White Flag Iris.

White Flag Iris

It has such clean lines, radiant colours and at times even a cheeky disposition as it cocks its head on its side, and smiles across the open places it inhabits.
But it also holds a special place for me as it is a favourite of my daughter too, who would frequent the high places with her dad.
On our last trip out in the wilds (before she left the nest for good) she 'acquired' a small specimen from the banks of Lea River below Lake Lea and carried it home in her pack where she proudly presented it to me. (What can you say?)
That small specimen now covers a square metre at home and is a constant reminder of our days and nights spent in the back country.

lets share some tales and if you have pictures then those too.

[WarrenH]

The tiny Royal Bluebell Wahlenbergia gloriosa is my favourite native. It is also the Floral Emblem of the Australian Capital Territory. The Royal Bluebell is a protected species.

It is a tiny almost invisible flower, seen growing amongst the native grasses or on the bear edges of tracks, normally in the wetter parts of the high country. I like it because despite its tiny size it is a survivor. At the Australian Botanic Gardens on Black Mountain, the gardeners have been unable to establish the flower. I only see it surviving in the worst nutrient depleted conditions, in the most compacted concrete-like clay imaginable, this appears how the plant likes it.

Also included are images, where I've found the flowers growing. The flowers were photographed by holding a magnifying glass in front of a standard lens and focus was achieved by moving the camera towards the flower until it looked adequately sharp.

This flower was on the roadside on Dogtrap Road just over the Northern ACT Border. Heading to the historic Dogtrap Crossing on the Murrumbidgee River.






This flower was photographed on the fringe of the wooded Oaky Creek Flora Reserve on Narrungullen Mountain and the valley is the Goodradigbee River Valley, New South Wales.






Warren.

[Nick S]

I reckon the Isophysis Tasmanica is pretty unique. Endemic to Tassie actually. I've only seen it on the slopes of the Western Arthur range.

Don't have my own photo but this flickr photo does it justice. http://www.flickr.com/photos/55439112@N08/5312365166/

[ignavus davus]

My personal favourite is the Tasmania waratah (Telopea truncata). The striking red color and contrast with the deep green leaves gives a bush that look that would be at home in any garden. They are in flower at the moment and look absolutely stunning on the Wellington range, especially on the approach to Collins Bonnet.

[taswegian]

Nick does that flower go a gooey rotten mess when it dies? I remember seeing something similar (from memory) ages ago and then next time it was quite putrid. Weird the way it went so soon after flowering.

I can see why you like the Bluebell and interesting way of taking the photo. Those images are impressive.

Its interesting regarding threatened species - plants.
I learnt through a job I was working on recently that we can actually kill off our threatened species with kindness.
An example was something down Midlands on road side and so they fenced and stopped mowing and it nearly died out. Resumed previous activities and it thrived.
Also examples of threatend plants have been discovered in quarries that actually give protection from the lack of attention but in a 'controlled' way as you would imagine in such a place.

[tasadam]

For me, it's pretty hard to pick a favourite.

[WarrenH]

... I can see why you like the Bluebell and interesting way of taking the photo.

I use the front element from a Canon EFS 17-85mm zoom lens that broke. I pulled the lens apart and use the front element as the magnifier or to be more 'photographic' as a diopter because I don't have a macro lens. It isn't perfect but it gets in close for the small flowers.

For me, it's pretty hard to pick a favourite.

TA don't let that stop you, post them all.

I've a few more favourites, including critically endangered species from the Murrumbidgee/Murumbateman Region to the NW of the ACT. Plants like the Wee Jasper Spider Flower Grevillea iaspicula which is believed to have only 150 mature plants existing in the wild and the Tumut Grevillea Grevillea wilkinsonii with only 100 mature plants again believed to be existing in the wild.

Another beautiful small flower found near the streams to the NW of the Australian Capital Territory, is the Black Anther Flax Lilly Dianella revoluta. I photographed this flower on the Murrumbidgee River at Carkella Station near West Eumburra. This is a plant easily confused with the Iron Grasses until it is seen flowering.

[gayet]

Much darker blue than the commonly seen dianellas. Probably related to the black anther I suppose. What colour are the berries when mature?

[WarrenH]

Gaye, the blue is actually darker than in my shots. I lightened the blue just a tad to retain more detail in the petals.

The round berries are an olive green and the longer berries on the plant are a deep purple. I was lucky to find this plant still in flower. The other plants that I saw no longer had flowers, just berries. I only photographed the Dianella last week. I live about 5 kilometres from the Murrumbidgee River, so I visit the river often, on my push bike with the camera.

Warren.

[Tasallan]

One of my favourite native shrubs is the native laurel - Anopterus (Escalloniaceae - with it's serrated leaves and beautiful white flower clusters with blushes of pink make it a most attractive flower.

[north-north-west]

This was a tricky one. There's nothing like a wattle in full bloom. And I've been getting heavily into native orchids over the last ten years or so. But then I was fiddling with some shots I took on a walk a few weeks ago and came across some images of the first mainland wildflower I noticed, on my first proper mainland walk. I fell in love at first sight, and the affection has endured all these years. It has to be one of the loveliest and most endearing blooms we have: the Fringed Lily.