Australian Plants

Davidsonia pruriens

Davidson's Plum. This is a small erect tree with large leaves composed of many leaflets. Large, dark purple fruits form usually off the trunk. These are about 5cm in diameter and have 2 seeds. The fruit is edible, but tart, but is used in the Bush Foods industry. The tree occurs in rainforest areas, and so requires good water. See Davidson's Plum on my Bush Tucker site.

Daviesia umbellata

Native Gorse. Prickly shrub to 1m with small narrow spiky leaves, producing small pea flowers along the arching stems. Flowers are mostly yellow with red centres.

Delarbrea michieana

A slender rainforest shrub with a crown of large pinnate leaves to about 1m long. Showy masses of dark blue shiny fruit are borne beneath the foliage. An understorey plant.

Dendrobium falcorostrum

Beech Orchid. White flowers to 2.5cm across in spring.

Dendrobium speciosum

King Orchid. A large epiphytic Australian orchid which has thick 60 mm wide leaves. Long racemes of flowers occur in spring. Flower colour usually varies from white to yellow. This species requires a reasonable amount of sunlight. Photograph courtesy Dot Crane.

Dianella brevipedunculata

A tufty plant with small blue flowers followed by 1cm dark purple berries. Leaves are strap-like, weeping, to 1 metre. The flower stalk do not reach above the foliage, and it is much divided - webbbed. It does not appreciate too much shade.

Dianella atraxis

A tufty plant with small blue flowers followed by 1cm dark purple berries. Leaves are strap-like, weeping, to 80 centimetres. The leaves are quite broad compared to the other Dianellas, and are quite dark green when grown in some shade. It grows quite well under trees. The leaf stalk reaches above the foliage.

 

Dioscorea sp.

This is a young native yam, but I am not sure which species. It is a slender vine which seems to die back at times.

Diploglottis cunninghamii

Native Tamarind. A tall, but narrow, rainforest tree with a crown of huge compound leaves. The dark green leaflets are longer than 300 mm and have prominent veins. The large round orange fruits are edible and used to make refreshing drinks. See more information on my Bush Tucker pages.

Dodonaea triquetra

Hop Bush. This plant has leaves about 8 cm long, and grows to about 3m high. It has an open appearance, usually with a rather straggly shape. The flowers are usually not noticed, but the clusters of three cornered papery fruits, each about 1.5 cm long, are easily seen. Both lime green and dark purple forms were found growing together. Photographed in September, in Cleveland.

Elaeagnus triflora

(syn. E. latifolia) Millaa Millaa. A rambling vine with leaves about 7 cm long having metallic silvery undersides. 1 cm white flowers occur in late winter to spring, followed by 2 cm red fruits on female plants.

Elaeocarpus grandis

Blue Quandong. A fast growing, large, spreading, distinctive, rainforest tree, which is conspicuous because of the presence of old leaves turned red, as seen in the photograph. White skirt-like flowers in summer are followed by metallic blue fruits 3cm diameter, which contain a hard pitted centre.

Elaeocarpus reticulatus

Blueberry Ash. Small tree with white or pink skirt-like flowers in spring, followed by blue berries. Dark green serrated leaves. It is a dense tree with branches to the ground if adequately watered.

Eucalyptus curtisii

Plunket Mallee. A small gum tree to 6 m with smooth bark and narrow blue-green leaves. Very floriferous with the white flowers appearing in October - November. This tree is well known in gardesn of South East Queensland, where it is endemic to a few confined areas.

Eucalytpus microcorys

Tallowood. A large Australian eucalypt with a characteristically red brown stringybark. It may retain branches close to the ground. These are often almost perpendicular to the trunk. The leaves are dark green above, about 100 mm long. Small white flowers appear in winter.

Eucalyptus phoenicea

Scarlet Gum. This Northern Australian tree produces abundant 30 mm orange flowers in groups along the branches. Parrots love the nectar from the flowers, and break some of the smaller branches in the process. The tree has a thick brown flaky bark. Smaller branches are smooth. This tree was photographed in Brisbane, where it is fairly rare, but deserves to be planted more widely.

Eucalytpus planchoniana

Porcupine Stringybark, Planchon's Stringybark, Bastard Tallowwood. Large tree with red-brown stringybark, long bluish-green leaves to 20cm. White flowers in December to January are followed by large ribbed gumnuts to about 2cm diameter.

Eucalyptus ptychocarpa

Now called Corymbia ptychocarpa. A small tree to about 6m with large leaves, especially when juvenile. Masses of showy, large 7cm flowers are usually pink to red, but white ones occur on some trees. These are very bird attractant. Everybody with a garden should have one!

Eucalyptus racemosa ssp. racemosa

Northern Scribbly Gum. A tall tree to 15m. Bark is usually mostly bluish, but in late spring often shows yellowish patches. The "scribbles" in the bark are caused by an insect, and are found on the southern side of the tree. Flowers in spring. A koala food tree. Trees often show scarring where large branches have broken off.

Evodiella muelleri (syn. Melicope sp. Shipton's Flat)

One of my favourites; everyone in the right climate should grow one (or more) of these delightful rainforest shrubs. Mine flowers 3 or 4 times per year. You have to look inside the foliage to really appreciate the masses of beautiful lolly-pink flowers crowded along the branches. Flowers are followed by aromatic, 4-lobed fruits about 2.5cm across. The plant is related to the better known Pink-flowered Evodia - Melicope elleryana (formerly Euodia elleryana) and has similar leaves, but smaller, and a much denser and more tidy appearance, and is much smaller. So plant one!