Friends GCRBG - GrowingGrowing MattersMatters...Friends of Gold Coast Regional Botanic Gardens Inc Growing Matters Winter 2018 P4 From the Curator - Liz Caddick Firstly I'd like to

GrowingGrowingGrowing

Volume 20 Winter 2018

Mark your calendar NOW !

20th ANNIVERSARY DINNER

October 6th, 2018

MattersMattersMatters

Friends of Gold Coast Regional Botanic Gardens Inc Growing Matters Winter 2018 P2

2018 Committee

President

Alex Jakimoff

Vice President

Alan Donaldson

Secretary

Catherine Simpson

Treasurer

Harry Ellis

Australian Plants

Lyn Reilly

Education

Rana Baguley

Members

Kate Heffernan

Cindy Murray

Richard Phillips

Patron:

Gene Rosser

Contents From the President......3

From the Curator......4

From the Secretary .....5

Gardening....6

Focus on 20 years of Friends P7

Valè Shir ley......8

Education............9

Sydney Botanic Gardens......10

Gold Coast Volunteer Awards....11

Buddha Festival Award Night.....12

Commonwealth Games...... 13

Flowers by Friends......14

Birdwing Butterfly Report....15

My Bonsai......16

Garden Guides......17

Birds of the Gardens....18

Aust Plants, Friends Centre.....19

The Rose Garden......20

Book Review - Protea.....21

Butterflies' and moths.....22

Date claimer ................22

Dick‟s Challenge..... 23

Plus.....24

20 Years of reporting

Friends

of the Gold Coast Regional

Botanic Gardens Inc

was for med in 1998.

Friends celebrate our 20th

later this year. Do join us.

Refer P22 for more

infor mation.

Important News:

Guided Walks At t he rec en t Gu ide m ee ting it

w as dec ided t o inc reas e t he

num ber of free gu ided w a lk s t ha t

w e o ff e r.

W a lk s wi ll st ill be a t 10. 00am .

T he new rost e r wi ll p robab ly

c om m enc e in J u ly.

M ore det a il s t o f ol low.

1 s t & 3r d Sunday of t he m on t h

2 n d & 4 t h W ednes day of t he

m on t h

Butt e rf ly w a lks w it h J os eph ine

w il l be 1 s t T ues day o f t he m ont h

(but no t J une and J u ly ) at

9. 00am

N a tiv e Bee w a lk s w it h Gare t h

w il l be 1 s t & 3 r d Fr iday of t he

m on t h a t 9. 00am

Cover Photo

The fruits, seeds and child are symbols of the future

of GCRBG. The 20th Anniversary Dinner of the Friends

of the Gold Coast Regional Botanic Gardens will be

held on October 6th 2018.

Mark your calendars. More infor mation inside and

further details will be given when all is finalised.

Friends are now members of .....

The Flower Association (Q ld) which

represents growers of traditional

flowers and foliage, tropicals, natives

and wildflowers as well as florists,

wholesalers, exporters, consultants,

researchers and educators. Visit their

website at:.

www.flowersqueens land.asn.au

http://www.flowersqueensland.asn.au


The Friends worked hard to please our April

Commonwealth Games visitors, inc luding twice daily

guided walks and longer opening hours. Our

volunteers and Coordinators did a great job and we

appreciate those contributions to the city‟s effort.

Although the expected visitor numbers did not

eventuate, that disappoint ment was tempered by

some lessons learned – so as a result the Guides are

planning to increase the number of free guided walks

every month.

Sadly we have lost one of our long standing

members Shir ley Newman who passed away in ear ly

May. Shir ley has been a dedicated enthusiastic

volunteer for many years and was a hard working

keen contributor to the Friends, we will miss her

greatly. Further details are within Growing Matters …

Valé Shir ley Newman.

Congratulations to a Friend who was awarded a

prize during the recent National Volunteering Week.

The Gold Coast organization Volunteering Services

Australia gave Peter Reilly a well deserved award

following 20 years of multiple varied roles, a worthy

recipient Peter well done !

Our Education Coordinator Rana Baguley has

stepped back after 10 years of organising the

wonderful program that she pioneered “Education at

the Gardens”. This Council funded program brought

many thousands of schoolchildren to the Botanic

Gardens, introducing them to the wonders of Nature.

Rana and the Friends can be truly proud of setting up

and expanding such a successful venture and now it

will be another Education provider‟s turn.

Congratulations Rana, your legacy is with a ll those

schoolchildren who have benefited in their

environmental education from your passion!

A big thank you to Southern Pacific Developments

who have again been a very generous donor.Our

sincere gratitude for Mr Charles Wang when Shelly

and I were presented with a large cheque at the

recent Buddha Birth Day Festival held at South Bank

in Brisbane. The Friends are very appreciative for any

donations, and in fact we have a tax deductible Gift

Fund that is used for purely environmental purposes.

For example over the past year we have contributed

to the design and installation of very popular

interpretive signs around the gardens such as the

Endangered Plants trail.

Our Botanic Gardens Day event on June 3rd was

very successful, attracting thousands of visitors

enjoying our displays and guided walks. This year had

a different theme and flavor with the Yugambeh

Museum and GC Food Trucks bringing different

people to the “green heart of the gold”. Across

Australia and NZ these Open Days celebrate and

showcase the Botanic Gardens, so our various Friends

groups welcomed the opportunity to interact with an

appreciative Gold Coast community.

Our next event is to be at the Botanical Bazaar Gold

Coast Garden Festival on 16th September. Held at

the Country Paradise Park lands in Nerang, we‟ll be

flying the flag for Friends and the Gardens. While this

show has been running for a few years this will be our

first time there… another exciting promotional event

where we can talk to our community.

Please mark your diaries for our Friends

20thAnniversary Dinner …yes this year it is a lready 20

years since our founding and we‟ll be celebrating in a

big way later this year (look for the date c laimer in

this Growing Matters).

We have plenty of achievements to celebrate and

also plenty to look forward to, so I really like the

chosen theme of the evening

“Celebrating the past, looking to the future”.

From the President ~ Alex Jakimoff

Peter Reilly a t the Awa rds Presentation

Celebrating the Past Looking to the Future

Valé Shir ley Newman


From the Curator - Liz Caddick

Firstly I 'd like to thank the Friends and Rotary for their generous

contributions towards the new signs in our Endangered and Indigenous

Plant Use trails. New signs were installed in April, with more to come

in June. The signs help to explain our living plant collection to

visitors, and make people aware of why plants are so important.

I 'd also like to thank the Friends garden guides, who have recent ly

done a huge job expanding their walks programme and volunteer

numbers. Guided walks are a great way to get to know the Gardens

better, as well as getting out and active. There are so many different

walks to choose from, so look on the Friends website for the ones that

interest you.

Our new Smell Bed in the Sensory Garden is starting to grow well.

Explore your senses next time you're down there with the delicious

Heliotropium arborescens (commonly known as Cherry Pie), and a

variety of weird and wonderful smelling Pelargoniums, inc luding rose,

pine and African spice. Other plants in the garden inc lude the

pungent smelling Rue (Ruta graveolens), which has been used as a

medicinal herb since before Roman times, and several Artemesias,

the bitter flavour of which are used to flavour drinks and teas. Plants

develop strong smells and bitter tastes for many reasons, inc luding to

discourage animals from grazing and to attract pollinators.

The garden also inc ludes a variety of different scented sages and

thymes, as well as some beautiful smelling flowering shrubs suitable

for subtropical gardens, inc luding Gardenia augusta ‘Florida‟,

Camellias „Marge Miller‟ and „Plantation Pink‟ and Radermachera

„Summer Scent‟.

Variegated mint scented Rue (Ruta graveolens) Heliotropium arborescens

Camellia „Plantation Pink‟

New Signage

Endangered Plant Trail sign is sponsored by Southern Pacific Developments and Friends. The Indigenous Plant Use trail is

sponsored by Rotary and Friends.


The dining room table is even

more crowded as it now has the

new Friends Centre computer on it

temporarily while I set up the new

Point-of-Sale System -(POS). The

POS will record all transactions,

how they were paid for and issue

receipts so that manual records no

longer need to be made.

All transactions will be entered by

scanning a barcode.

Friends Centre Coordinator Mary Woods has listed

everything for sale in the Friends Centre and all

items are now in the system. Some items, such as

books come with their own barcodes while the POS

system itself can print barcodes for others. So each

item will have a unique barcode which will be

scanned into the POS system.

Donations and memberships c lasses will a ls o be

issued with unique barcodes. The POS will

significant ly improve the efficiency and accuracy of

the Friends financial processes. However it is a

significant change in process and thorough training

will be needed so volunteers feel comfortable with

using it. I am developing a training manual for the

POS and training will be delivered in July. (And I will

recover a small space on my dining room table for

eating ...... or most likely more Friends' papers!)

Another significant change already in operation is

the replacement of PayPal with an EFTPOS machine

from Bendigo Bank. This is proving much simpler for

volunteers to operate and is attracting significant

sales by cards. It is wireless enabled and it was a big

improvement to be able to process sales on the spot

for the Botanic Gardens Open Day on 3 June,

especially since the Open Day activities were held

over on the other side of the lagoon and not near

the Friends Centre at a ll.

A further system improvement which is currently

being assessed, this time by the Herbarium

volunteers, is to transfer the extensive plant

database, currently in Excel, to an electronic record

system, such as that used by the Royal Botanic

Gardens in Sydney called IRIS.

On other matters, the lease of the Friends Centre

we have with Council is due to end on 30 June and

we have signed a renewal for 5 years. Preceding this

offer from Council we were required to complete a

Sustainability Audit which we passed with flying

colours.

Also on 30 June, the Agreements with Coffee at

the Gardens a lso end.

A revised Agreement has been drafted for a 12

months extension and has been presented to Sam

and Jason.

From the Secretary's Dining Room Table - Catherine Simpson


We bid farewell on the passing of our long serving

gardener Shir ley Newman. No matter whatever

happened, rain hail or shine Shir ley was such a

dedicated gardener and would turn up ready to do

her bit.

You could always count on her to arrive ear ly,

commit herself despite any physical ailments and

then butter the fruit buns for morning tea

afterwards. A strong and uncomplaining character

forged during a very different era in Australia, with a

truly inspiring deter mination.

A lovely Grevillea Dorothy Gordon that she planted

in 2014 for her 90th birthday near the Friends Centre

is thriving as a wonderful living memento to her love

of nature.

The gardening team have installed 28 signs a long

the Indigenous Use trail , and what a great

difference they make. Particular ly in the Bushfoods

Garden and Story of our Country, these signs are

really appreciated by our volunteers and visitors

alike.

We war mly welcome new gardening volunteers

Caleb Breuer and Jenny Capper who have both added

lots of new energy and enthusiasm to our group. Als o

re-energising us is the cooler wintry weather as we

enjoy crisp starts and lovely war m days.

In preparation for the Commonwealt h Games the

front entrance was planted with a selection of native

groundcover Scaevolas or Fan Flowers around a grass

tree. Have a look at them now as they‟ve thrived

and really brightened up the entrance with their

showy blue and white flowers.

However, our regular gardening tasks of weeding,

pruning and mulching in the botanic gardens are

mainly concentrated in the native vegetation

communities of the Mangroves to Mountains

precinct. Our energetic mornings are well rewarded

with scrumptious nibbles and hot drinks afterwards

on the verandah.

Gardening - Alex Jakimoff

Right: Greg, Leanne and

Santo „ lifting the skirts‟ on

a grass tree. Image Alex

Shirley Newman

Valé Shirley!

Left: A view of the BG towards

the hi lls. Somewhere there

lurks Dick the Gardener. But

where? Image Alex

Laura Ryan‟s photo of a strange

growth on a eucalypt - More info

when it comes


How do I write 20 years of Friends into a few paragraphs?

It‟s impossible, so I‟ll just recollect elements from our

beginnings that I‟m confident will give some idea of the extent

of the journey your Friends group has travelled! I‟ve pulled out

two thick folders of news letters and Growing Matters and

there‟s so much reading it‟s a lmost overwhelming.

The steering committee was for med in July 1998, after many

meetings, over many months

- 20 years ago! There were ten members, of which four are still active

members and volunteers. Sadly Ken Hunter from Gold Coast

Orchid association, who played an integral role and was on the

Steering Committee has passed away. I remember and still

value his wonderful letter of support and encouragement after I

mooted the need for a botanic garden to a group of horticulture

students in November 1997. (I had just returned from several

months motor-homing through Europe, UK and Ireland, being

inspired by botanic gardens a long the way) Later I raised the

need with Australian Institute of Horticulture and other local

groups, inc luding the Society for Growing Australian Plants

which proved vita lly important.

The first news letters were one sheet, double sided and

printed in b and w at TAFE. They spoke of getting community

support and writing to key individuals. We held meetings in

classrooms at TAFE, or at member‟s homes to plot and

strategise. There were public displays and stands at garden

events. I remember vividly the nerves I felt when Peter Reilly

and I first met with Mayor Gary Baildon to advocate for a

regional botanic garden, and the strong interest the then Mayor

showed.

In May 1999 presentation s lides to full council were prepared

by Caroline Kelly and together we stood in front of a ll

councillors and made our point! After meetings, presentations,

letters and public forums the whole vision was a lmost hijacked

by protesters. I have an enduring memory of Gene Rosser with

a placard saying the Rosser Family supported botanic gardens at

Rosser Park. Friends had participated in site selection with

council and the Master Planners from Landplan Studio and were

involved in the Master Planning process with Landscape

Architect Lawrie Smith AM from the very start. Lawrie, known

world-wide for his works in botanic gardens and public spaces

captured a vision for a regional botanic gardens promoting,

conserving and displaying our regions flora. It became Friends

mission to bring it into fruition and remains valid. Friends‟

vision finally seemed a reality after five hard working years.

Council appointed a Project Officer/Curator – Kit Smith, who

supported the first Friends planting day in the Open Eucalyptus

Woodland. The design was by Friends, a concept based on the

five rivers of the region, but regrettably a casualty of camphor

laurel competition and shade. From the June 2003 news letter

“great news – to coincide with National Tree Day on Sunday 27

July , the Friends are coordinating the inaugural community

(Continued on page 9)

Focus on 20 years of Friends......

Development of our Botanic Gardens Involvement - Kate Heffernan

She oak gr ove planting Image: Kate Heffer nan

She oak gr ove a decade later Image: Kate Heffer nan

An ear ly community celebr ation at the gar dens

Early photo of Peter, Ca roline a nd Kate - archive copy


Planning is under way for the new preschool program, ‘Little Nature Lovers’ .

I have often felt that with the educational activities that Friends currently offer, the 3-5 year age

group is not catered for. This is going to change!

A couple of years ago, this concept was put to the City of Gold Coast Council to help fund

preparation and delivery of the program. It was rejected but now Naturally GC has come on board and

agreed to fund it so it will be free for children and their parents/carers.

Little Nature Lovers will be held on the third Wednesday of the

month from 10:00 - 11:00am at the Rotary Education Pavilion.

Numbers will be limited to 15 children plus their carers.

There will be numerous themes which focus on the natural

environment inc luding trees, insects, reptiles, birds, aboriginal

culture all tying in with our Botanic Gardens. Activities will

inc lude nature trails, story reading, art, singing and roleplaying.

It promises to be lots of fun while interacting with nature!

The program will start on Wednesday 18 July this year and run

through to June next year exc luding December and January. We have a program leader but if you

would like to help out by volunteering for some or one of the activities, please let me know.

The full schedule of activities will appear in the next Naturally GC book to be published in June and

bookings will be through their website. www.goldcoast.qld.gov.au/council/naturallygc

We will again have

Discover our Feathered Friends

Tuesday 10 July at 9:00am

Botanica Quest Dare to Discover

Friday 13 July with two sessions at 9:00am & 10:00am

Places are limited so bookings are essentia l

Phone: 0449 561 674

Please check out our latest display in the Friends Centre which focuses on the Richmond Birdwing

Butterfly.

Some years ago the Richmond Birdwing Butterfly vine, Pararistolochia praevenosa was planted in the

Botanic Gardens. We have had a sighting of the caterpillar and are very excited about a chrysalis

appearing and eventually a beautiful Richmond Birdwing Butterfly emerging. I wonder if it will be a gir l

or a boy?!

We’ll keep you posted!

Text and photos provided by

Rana Baguley Education Officer

[email protected]

Education ~ Rana Baguley

http://www.goldcoast.qld.gov.au/council/naturallygc-program-24575.html

mailto:[email protected]


tree planting day at Rosser Park. Working in

conjunction with council, Greening Australia, Gold

Coast Tafe and Society for Growing Australian Plants

this foundation planting will celebrate the

commencement of the Botanic Gardens with a true

community event”. This was part of the first

news letter report from President Nick Bloor who

went on to serve as President through a very active

ten years of planning and planting by Friends.

It is impossible to relate the intervening years in a

few lines. It requires a book which is a project I‟ve

already begun! Anyone looking from the outside may

not fully appreciate the extent of Friends‟ growing

contribution over 20 years. It could easily be taken

for granted that it a ll just happened. The extensive

Friends roles of today are vital to Friends aims and

objectives in education, conservation, horticulture,

science and advocacy for the regions incredible

biodiversity and remain as the principal commit ment

of Friends as they begin to celebrate 20 years and

look to the future. Come and celebrate the past and the future at the

Friends 20th Birthday dinner!

(Continued from page 7) Valé It has been sad to say goodbye to Shirley Newman.

She enjoyed a long and very active life. One of her activities was bush walking and I think

she has walked and enjoyed every track in the National Parks of this part of Australia. Shirley had the ability to finish a long, difficult walk looking as

fresh and tidy as she did at the beginning. For many years she organised the walks for the Gold Coast

Bushwalkers.

Shirley also made a great contribution to society by helping deliver "Meals on Wheels". She was very

pleased and proud to to be still doing this after she

turned ninety.

Apart from her love for her family perhaps her greatest joy was gardening. As well as caring for her own beautifully manicured garden she visited

gardens opened under the "Open Garden Scheme" in southern Queensland and northern New South

Wales. Amazing distances were travelled and

favourite gardens were visited more than once. As well as this Shirley helped "Grow" the Gold

Coast Regional Botanic Gardens. She regularly attended "The Friends " Wednesday morning

working bees for many years - starting very soon

after they began.

Valé Kate and I were very sad to hear the news of Shirley‟s passing. It was a privilege to have worked beside her over approximately 13 years at

Community plantings - she was invariably the first Friend volunteer there - and at many working bees, she was there rain, hail or shine. She was always

positive about everything and it was interesting to hear recollections of her earlier life. She had a deep

love of plants and gardens and loved to talk about the gardens we had both visited. Despite her age she never looked at doing the easy jobs, in short she was

an inspiration.

Planting Grevillea „Dorothy Gordon‟

on Shirley‟s 90th Birthday....

Members of the Gardening group

include Dick, Alan, and Alex

... greeting the swans - definitely NOT feeding

them

ABC‟s Gardening Australia Sept 2014


Sydney Botanical Gardens ~ Catherine Simpson

The City of Sydney is blessed with a huge area on its fringe known as the

Domain in which sits the Art Gallery of NSW, the Royal Botanic Gardens of

Sydney and the National Herbarium of New South Wales. But we must

never forget that this was the land of the Cadigal people. It was initia lly

cleared by the settlers in 1788 to establish the first far m and thus began

the modern transformation of the Australian continent. The site continues

to play an important role for the Aboriginal people of Sydney as custodians

of an area of deep significance and the Gardens strive to support

Aboriginal people. (The Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney: the First 200 Years,

Halstead Press, NSW 2007). Of course the landscape is vastly transfor med

and is now dominated by towering

trees, vast lawns and extensive

plantings in manicured beds. No weeds

there I can report! I note however that

plant signage is lacking so the Friends

can well feel proud of the wonderful

signs which we have contributed to

enhance our own Gardens.

I was aware of a new facility opened in 2016 to celebrate the 200th

anniversary. It is called the Calyx. It is a huge architect designed

rotunda, one side of which is enc losed as a greenhouse with a massive

green wall standing 6 metres high and 50 metres long. This wall provides

spectacular botanical displays and when I visited it had the word

“Pollination” written along it in plants. The message was about bees and

the raised beds in front had wire framed bee sculptures a lso planted out

and there were bees hanging from the roof. It was a truly amazing sight

and was being enjoyed by students, tourists and locals a like. I could not

help thinking though of how lovely it would be to have at our disposal a

fraction of the maintenance resources clearly needed to maintain such a

project.

But what I found most compelling of a ll in my visit were the signs at the entrances to the Gardens and the

Herbarium which loudly proc laimed -

NO PLANTS NO FUTURE ... THE VITAL SCIENCE.

Lichen on Brachychiton Lichen on Brachychiton Lichen on Brachychiton - Photos Laura Ryan A lichen is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple

fungi in a symbiotic relationship. The combined lichen has properties different from those of its component

organisms. Lichens are amongst the oldest living organisms and can be used to tell the age of fossils if

present. Wikipedia

Note: There are a number of

Brachychitons in the Gold

Coast Regional Botanic

Gardens. Some have the

distinctive bottle shaped

trunk which can take up to 30

years to form.

Brachychiton Ormeau - Ormeau Bottle Tree is an endangered species. Lichens are amongst the oldest

living organisms and can be used to tell the age of fossils if present.

Bees in the Calyx

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lichen


In mid-May, Friends member Peter Reilly was

nominated for the award of Gold Coast Volunteer of

the Year. He was one of three to be successful (pic

below) being awarded a week‟s holiday with C lassic

Holidays in the coming year.

Peter: „It is certainly a great honour to

realise my efforts over the years have been

appreciated. In saying that, of course, I

need to a lso say that it has been a great

pleasure - the things I have done, and still

do, are my keen interests - so I love being

involved with them. As well, it is

wonderful to be part of a team, and it is as

much the efforts of a ll the team as my

contribution that counts.‟

His nomination read:

Peter Reilly began volunteering when he became a

foundation Friend of the Gold Coast Regional Botanic

Gardens twenty years ago, a couple of years before

the Gardens became a reality.

He served as Friends‟ treasurer and membership

officer for the next ten years. During this time he

gained charity status for the Friends as an

environmental organisation, so donations to its Gift

Fund are tax-deductible. He also assisted in writing

the constitution and devising Rules for Special

Interest Groups to become part of the Friends.

Australian Plants Gold Coast became a Special

Interest Group and Peter served as its president for

the first three-year term and recent ly another ter m.

He typeset their self-published book Grow Nat ives

on the Gold Coast: a practical guide for gardeners.

Over the years Peter has prepared and presented

talks about the Gardens (and the book) to many

interested groups and Garden C lubs.

As part of his involvement with their development of

native gardens at the Gold Coast Historical Society

grounds in Elliott Street, Bundall, he designed and

built the automatic watering system there.

Eight years ago he became a volunteer in the

Garden‟s fledg ling Herbarium – a vita l part of any

botanic gardens. He spends two mornings a week

helping to collect, press and document Garden

specimens. This a lso involves recording GPS locations

and taking photographs of each specimen – in situ

and dried. W ith his for mer work background in

electrical and communications eng ineering, he

became a natural to set up and maintain the

herbarium database. He has recently developed a

searchable website for the herbarium specimens and

is currently helping to investigate the development

of a major database of Garden plants.

Text: Lyn Rei lly

Beverley Windsor keeps her eye on

the Swan family and reports sadly no

cygnets have been seen.

Award of Gold Coast Volunteer of the Year

Mothers‟ Day Flower Arrangements of

Flowers by Friends Pics: Laura Ryan

Left: Laura‟s stunning photo of the sun shining

through the leaves of this Eucal yptus 'Summer Red'

- a hybrid of E. ptychocarpa and E. ficifolia on the

Ring Road near the morning coffee cart.

Friends a re saddened to lea rn of the pa ssing of

member Tony Swan (pic Rt). With Noreen our

Friends Communications Coordina tor a nd

news letter editor, Tony has been a member for

ten yea rs. T ony a ctive ly volunteered at various

special events and planting days a nd worked on

the bbq with the ca tering tea m. Our specia l

thoughts a re with Noreen and family.

The Communica tions Team and all Friends.


Birds of the Gardens #13 - with Jenny Rosewell

Our sincere gratitude to Mr Charles Wang of

Southern Pacific Developments for his generous

donation to the Friends presented at the recent 3 day

Buddha Birth Day Festival held at South Bank

Parklands in Brisbane. Mr Wang is a wonderful

supporter of the FGCRBG and the preservation of our

regional endangered species.

Our President Alex Jakimoff and I represented the

Friends. We felt very honoured that the Friends of

the Gold Coast Regional Botanic Gardens were chosen

for this donation together with 4 other but much

larger charitable organisations – Royal Brisbane and

Women‟s Hospital Foundation, Brisbane Lord Mayor‟s

Charitable Trust, Children‟s Hospital Foundation and

the Mater Foundation.

The South Bank Park lands were lit up with red

happiness and peace lanterns to signify the

importance of happiness and peace on Earth and it

certainly was a very happy and peaceful occasion

showcasing the diversity of Australia‟s multicultural

society.

Buddha‟s birthday is the most significant day of the

year for Buddhists celebrating the birth of the

founder of Buddhism. It is his teachings that have

given Buddhists the opportunity to understand the

importance of happiness and peace within society.

This year, the Festival celebrated its 22nd

anniversary of the event being held at South Bank.

Attended by more than 200,000 visitors, it is the

largest event of its type in the wor ld.

As volunteers ourselves, we had the greatest

admiration for the extraordinary hard work and

dedication of the volunteers helping run the

proceedings. We also appreciated the delicious

vegetarian/vegan supper they provided after the

officia l ceremony and perfor mances.

As we left we felt not only grateful but a lso felt

that we had added to our appreciation and

understanding of the wonderful multicultural country

in which we live.

Buddha Birthday Festival and Grant

Presentation ~ Shelly Kelly

Shelly & Alex with cheque

Thank you BLIA Qld for your kindness and this amazing experience.


What anticipation we all had for the Commonwealth Games being

held on the Gold Coast!

Friends organised Free Guided Walks twice daily, extended the

Friends Centre hours to be open from 9:30 till 3:30pm and provided

self guided activities for children during the school holidays inc luding

nature trails, NaturePlay passports and the Kaialgumm games. Many

Friends put in a huge effort to cater for the expected influx of visitors.

Many of Friends were also volunteers for the Games.

The Friends Centre was reorganised to promote the merchandise on

sale with special emphasis being focused on a Bush Food display as

celebration of our indigenous culture that was a central theme to the

Commonwealth Games. Borobi even made a few appearance on the

guided walks and Friends Centre!

Those who came to the Gardens were impressed … a number of

overseas and interstate visitors wrote wonderful comments in the

visitors book, especially after the free guided walks.

Overall, Friends were disappointed in the number of people who

came to the Gardens.

Friends promoted as much as possible through their website and

Facebook page and the creation of posters and flyers. Thank you to

Saraya from Naturally GC who promoted the Free Guided Walks. And

thank you to a ll the Friends for your continued wonderful support

What a pity HRH Prince Char les and Camilla didn‟t visit our Botanic

Gardens on the Gold Coast … now that would have been a sure way to

increase our visitor numbers!

Borobi

Boro

bi

Borobi

Borobi

The Commonwealth Games 2018 ~ Rana Baguley

Alex, Catherine and Kym at the Presentations of the Diversity Centre Proposal.

Kym Ba ber is the a rchitect of tha t design.

Flowers by Friends a rra ngement


„Natural‟ is in!

Australian plants and South African wildflowers have the edge when it comes to an emphasis on a more

relaxed and sustainable style that is increasingly popular.

Wildflowers are taking an important place in wedding trends, a lso, with Australian grown South African

Proteas as the focal flowers in many bridal bouquets. Eucalypt leaves and Waxflowers (mainly

Chamelaucium uncinatum) are popular foliage and fillers. The beautiful and varied range of Banksias

provides an Australian focal flower a lternative to Proteas, but does not come in the same range of pinks.

For a brief time in Spring, Waratahs (red and white) make stunning features. Whilst

amazing, native foliage is available a ll year round, field grown natives vary by season

and the seasons are varying, too. Growers are noting that there is a gradual shift in

flowering times as seasonal crops mature earlier. Christmas Bush (Ceratopetalum) is

an obvious example, as it is flowering too ear ly for Christmas.

An accompanying trend to the use of more natives is the use of natural products.

Hessian, brown paper, cardboard boxes and jute ribbons, suit freer flowing floral

designs. Bunches and vases, without excessive use of plastic and other environmentally unfriendly materials,

are favoured by a growing number of people. F lowers by Friends (FbF) experiments with sustainable

materials and utilises plant products as much as possible. Our group offers vases and wrapped bunches,

while encouraging recycling of plastics, a lso.

For Mother‟s Day, our flora inc luded

gorgeous lime green Dryandra – stunning

with bright purple Callicarpa berries –

Paper Daisies, three types of Banksia and

flowering Nutty Gum, in arrangements,

bouquets, vases and posies. This year‟s

sales were most successful.

Prior to Mother‟s Day we prepared for the

year ahead with a major clean up and

reorganisation of the Rosser garage, where

our materia ls are kept. Thanks to the GCCC

Divisional Grant from Councillor Tay lor, we

have a lockable storage cupboard, making

for a much better system.

Eight of us spent a very satisfying working day.

Flowers by Friends…with Claudia Knapman

Beverley & Gene

Sue Claudia Laura

Above are some arrangements with name of the designer.

For beautiful Australian flowers,

please contact us by phone on

0429412968 or 0407580899,

by email

[email protected]

or through the Friends‟ Centre.



Caterpillar sighted! - Progress of Birdwing Project at our Gardens

Our Birdwing Project has had a long incubation.

It began with this Motion in September 2010: That the Fr iends of the Gold Coast Regional Botanic

Gardens promote the conservation of the Richmond Birdwing butterfl y by seeking Council

cooperation in the planting and maintenance of a sufficient number of Pararistolochia praevenosa

vines to form a viable butter fly feeding station in the Gardens.

2011 became our ‘Birdwing year’ First, at our 5th Friends Annual Celebration Lunch in May, our guest speaker

Ray Seddon (from the Richmond Birdwing Conservation Net work) spoke

passionately about this butterfly and its successful reintroduction in the

Sunshine Coast region since their plantings of the Birdwing Butterfly vine,

Pararistolochia praevenosa.

Next came our first plantings. Thanks to Alan Donaldson‟s meticulous records,

we know that there have been three major plantings of the vine in the

Gardens –

First 20 plants on Threatened Species Community day on 20th Sept. 2011.

Then students from SCISCO Get Set For Work on 2nd April 2012. (Twelve of the GECKO plants were

put in a long the Woodlands fence line to replace losses from the first planting and to extend the

planting further a long the fence line.)

Later another 12 were planted by a group of international Horticulture Students from Envirotech on

10t h July 2013. These were also planted along the Woodlands fence, most ly replacing losses from

the first two plantings but a lso to extend the plantings even further down the fence line.

In addition Alan has planted about six GECKO plants on the lower Nursery fence line. Several of these

were unfortunately whipper snipped but a couple have survived and at least one has flowered.

Then October 2011 (following the first planting event) became the ideal time to launch our Birdwing

Butterfly children‟s book - Birdwings’ New Home (author Lynette Reilly, illustrator botanical and butterfly

artist Lois Hughes). www.birdwingsnewhome.com

My quote from that time: This planting / publ ishing project has at t imes been exhausting and

frustrating – but I’m sure when we have beautiful Birdwing Butter flies fluttering in our Gardens,

we’ll remember none of that and just rejoice in their beauty.

Fast forward to May 2018 Jubilation in the Gardens recent ly when Kerrii noticed a healthy Birdwing

caterpillar on some birdwing vine Pararistolochia praevenosa leaves. [The soft new leaves of the Birdwing

vine is the only food they can eat. No larval food, no butterflies.]

Peter confir med the sighting with his photo (attached). Fingers crossed it survives long enough to pupate

and become a beautiful adult. Will it be a boy or a girl?

(Thanks to Ray Seddon for previous per mission to use his photos of adult male and female butterflies)

Lynette Reilly

http://www.birdwingsnewhome.com/


Melaleuca quinquenervia bonsai

Try a native bonsai ~ Alan Donaldson The natural for m of Australian plants which are

windswept, flood and fire ravaged survivors of often

-extreme seasons has a lways interested me,

perhaps as much or even more than the perfect

form we strive for in our gardens. To some extent

this has even influenced some of my pruning

techniques. Although a healthy well-for med plant

certainly has its place and is an attraction to me, I

think a twisted trunk with aged colourful bark and

interesting branch for mations shows real character.

It was inevitable that I became attracted to the

ancient art of Bonsai, firstly to admire others work

and then to try to grow my own, using Australian

plants.

Many Botanic Gardens have excellent bonsai

collections, two which stand out for me are Madrid

in Spain, and c loser to home, Brisbane. I was awe

stuck however when we recent ly visited the

National Arboretum in Canberra, as together with

an incredible tree collection it has wonderful

bonsai trees using Australian plants of varying

species.

When I first attempted to grow Australian plants in

a bonsai for m (pre-internet days) there was little

infor mation available, so rather than having an

educated approach based on the somewhat strict

bonsai disciplines shown in books, for me it was a

matter of trial and (many) errors.

My first attempts with some aged root bound plants

I had in pots at home showed little promise, either

in their appearance or long-ter m survival. It was not

until 1996 after finding some small windswept

twisted for ms of Melaleuca quinquenervia in full

flower in a sa ltwater wet land on the Sunshine Coast

that I thought of growing a bonsai from seed.

From the seeds I collected and ger minated, I chose

the most stunted and twisted seedling to pot on.

Interestingly enough, the better specimens of

seedlings grew into nice for ms in my then home

garden and other places where they were

eventually planted.

After approximately 18 months in a small pot I tried

my first root pruning, planting into a bonsai pot

followed by trunk shaping with copper wire and

branch thinning. I continued this process off and on

for approximately 15 years until I undertook a

practical bonsai course (a birthday present from

Kate). The course finally gave me an idea how to

present the plant with a legitimate bonsai for m, the

“Shaskan” or s lanting style, trying to emulate a tree

overhanging a creek. To do this I had to repot the

plant virtually sideways, exposing many of the roots

on one side. In addition, many of the branches on

the lower side of the plant needed removal.

Fortunately, the shape of the trunk seemed to fit

with this design and the plant took on a whole new

character.

Now 22 years after collecting and growing the seed,

the plant has passed through several for ms and is in

its second year of flowering. I keep it well watered

in a sunny sheltered position and it seems to be

thriving from the most recent root prune and

repotting. While I can‟t pretend that it is a perfect

form of bonsai with a ll the strict protocols, it does

give me pleasure to admire and care for. If you

have the time and patience why not try one

yourself?

Alan and parent plant at Coolum wetland

National Arboretum

Canberra

Bonsai collection

(Left & Right)


Volunteer Garden Guides ~ Shelly Kelly

Our big effort with guiding during the Commonwealth Games visitor

period 24th March to 20th April has had many benefits. The guide

training course that we ran earlier this year to increase the number

of guides in our group has given us not only some additional guides

but a lso an input of fresh ideas.

One of our guides who undertook this course and led several guided

walks through the Story of our Country garden over the

Commonwealth Games period was from Northern New South Wales.

Graeme volunteers with the Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens and

both guiding groups benefited with the exchange of ideas.

With our increase in marketing the varied walks in March and April,

a large number of local, interstate and overseas visitors are now

aware that the Gold Coast does have their own Botanic Gardens. The

feedback we received from those who joined the walks made us feel

very proud of our unique and beautiful gardens. We conducted 56

Guided Garden Walks, 8 Native Bee Walks, 4 Butterfly Walks and 4

Bird Walks over the 4 weeks. A big thank you to a ll our wonderful

and generous volunteer guides for helping over this busy period.

Thanks Sarah Jane for rising with the birds to take the 6.30am bird

walk - time for some s leep-ins now.

From July we will be increasing the number of free guided walks.

The Guided Garden Walks will now be available on the 1st and 3rd

Sundays of the month and the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays at 10.00 am.

Josephine will conduct Butterfly Walks at 9.00 am on the 1st Tuesday

of the month (but not June or July). Gareth will conduct the Native

Bee Walks at 9.00 am on the 1st and 3rd Fridays of the month

commencing in July .

Our new specialised walks:

“For the Love of Trees”

This guided walk is for tree lovers. We will walk a long treed

pathways, through groves of trees and tree corridors. We will enjoy

the shade of trees, and with reference to some tree families and

individual trees we will appreciate anew the precious, vital and

bountiful role of trees in a biodiverse wor ld.

“This Fragile World”

Take a “rare walk” through the Endangered Plant Trail & find out

why the Or meau Bottle Tree and Wallum Banksia have become

endangered in the wild. The Wallum Banksia is the Gold Coast floral

emblem and is a lso the emblem and logo for Friends and the Gold

Coast Regional Botanic Gardens.

“Indigenous Use of Bush Foods and Flora”

Walk along the Mangroves to Mountains path past the Butterfly

Garden and Fruits of the Forest to the bountiful Bush Foods Garden,

discovering plants that have contributed to the survival of indigenous

Australians for thousands of years, providing food, shelter, tools and

medicine.

The guides had been looking forward to our excursion to Lismore

Rainforest Botanic Gardens for a long time. Due to the number of

walks in March and April we finally saw an opening in May on

Wednesday 16th. We were not disappointed with our efforts to get to

(Continued on page 18)


Birds of the Gardens #14 ~ Jenny Rosewell

Scaly-breasted Lorikeet (Trichoglossus chlorolepidotus)

As the large gum trees come into flower here in The Gardens, expect to see these noisy lorikeets visiting in

large numbers. Often seen in the company of their more boisterous relatives, the Rainbow Lorikeets, Scaly

-breasted Lorikeets (Scalies or Greenies as they are often called) frequent ly go unnoticed.

Scaly-breasted Lorikeets are well camouflaged with their green upper wing and body plumage marked only

with yellow, scale-like feathers on their breast and neck. Both their beak and eyes are reddish. Their red/

orange underwings are clear ly visible when in flight. They are the second largest lorikeet, only s lightly

smaller than a Rainbow Lorikeet, having a shorter tail and lacking the bright colouring.

Habitat inc ludes eucalypt forests, woodlands, heathlands and well-treed urban areas across coastal,

eastern Australia from Cape York in Q ld, south to Wollongong in NSW. They are common in urban areas,

taking advantage of nectar bearing plants in parks and gardens. Leading

a nomadic life, they are seasonally common with numbers fluctuating in

response to local flowering eucalypts. Best spotting sites in the Gardens

inc lude high in the large gum trees near the lakes, among the grevilleas

throughout the gardens, or looking out from the Friends Centre

verandah.

Feeding in flocks, Scaly-breasted Lorikeets often join Rainbow Lorikeets

to feast on nectar and pollen harvested with their brush-like tongues

mostly from eucalypts, melaleucas, callistemons, banksia and grevilleas.

Readily foraging from a range of plants in our Botanic Gardens collecting

nectar, pollen, seeds and fruit from our vast array of plants, they

certainly have a varied diet on offer. In more rural areas they can cause

damage to orchard and grain crops.

Scalies fly swift ly on a straight path often flashing past in near

proximity. You can easily hear their rapid wing beats accompanied by

their high-pitched call, a continuous screech.

Breeding during the war mer weather, the female usually lays 2 white

eggs in a bed of rotting wood in a hollow tree trunk or broken eucalypt

branch. Both the male and female spend a lengthy time modifying the nest hollow by nibbling away the

decayed wood until the cavity is a suitable size. Only the female incubates the eggs with the male

providing her with food. Both sexes are active at caring for the hatchlings.

In some areas the Scaly-breasted Lorikeet is in s light dec line, possibly due to the increasing abundance of

Rainbow Lorikeets, perhaps due to the provision of artificia l food supplies.

Using their beak to grasp, they are nimble c limbers, making it difficult to capture a photo. When vis iting

The Gardens, take the time to seek out the Scaly-breasted Lorikeet among the raucous squabbling of the

lorikeet flock, or more easily, spot them in flight with their reddish underwing, or locate them from their

high pitched screeching and chattering.

Scaly

these wonderful botanic gardens run by the hardworking group of Friends. We were very well looked

after by their President Marie plus Denis, Geoff, Tracey and Graeme who guided us knowledgeably

through their special areas of the gardens.

If you wish to book a group guided walk or have any other queries,

email [email protected] or phone us on 0449 561 674.

(Continued from page 17)



a map of the Gardens

brochures on Friends Guided walks, our C limate

Watch project, Kaia lgumm Games and other

children‟s activities

flower arrangements from Flowers by Friends

flyers on upcoming events and activities

fact sheets on plants and wildlife in our

Gardens

changing displays, like the current Bushfoods

display

membership for ms

Friends Picture Gallery and digita l image

display of flowers in our Gardens

plants for sa le from the Friends Nursery

volunteers

books – in our extensive reference Library; and,

for sale, eg local plants, birds, bees, frogs,

butterflies, and bushwalks

gift ideas, inc luding unique items from botanic

artist Minjung Oh and pottery based on leaves

of plants in our Gardens by Helen Parer, and,

works from our Friends Craft Group members

local honey and beeswax candles

botanic coaster and Aroma Bloqs from BellArt

designs

organic teas, bush food spreads and cooking

ingredients

Mary Woods

Friends Centre Coordinator

Hello and Welcome to new Friends Since the beginning of Friends current financial year

on 1 October 2017, there have been 25 new

memberships – 10 Individual, 10 Pensioner and 5

Family memberships. When new members join

Friends of the Gold Coast Regional Botanic Gardens,

there is the option to be acknowledged in our

news letter. We are pleased to acknowledge the

following new Friends who joined since our last

edition of Growing Matters:

Ana Gonzales Ruth Lane Caleb Breuer Jannette Janssen Elizabeth Mullan Myrilla Skye

Peter Elliott Kathryn Bils land Leanne Reynolds

Samantha Hawthorn Rob Molhoek MP

Junko Mitsumoto

News from the Australian Plants Special Interest group

Our May event, organised by Richard Phillipps, was a bushwalk at Twin Falls,

Springbrook on Saturday 12th.

We met for lunch at Tallanbana picnic ground. We were amazed at the large

number of people walk ing the tracks (and the large number of parked cars

along the road!).

Many plants had grown up in the years since we last walked here and some of

the views are now obscured, especially my favourite of the two leaning

eucalypts. We determined to come back next time in the spring when more

of the heath plants would be in flower.

After the walk, we gathered at the home of a local orchid grower who

specialises in native Dendrobium species.

Next „event‟ will be the beautiful presentation „My Obsession with

Proteaceae‟ by Lew Matthews (see book review P21).

Dendrobium kingianum x

D. bigibbum

View from Twin Falls 2008

Gareth, Ma ry. Peter & Richa rd

Shall we see you at the Friends Centre for this

presentation on Saturday 9th June at 2pm?

What you will find at the Friends Centre


Fires tar

„Doub le Delight‟

Double Delight

A saying by Cicero: „If you have a garden and a library

you have everything you need‟.

„Eyes for You‟

„Firestar‟ „Peter Brock‟

Above Sue W, Harbhajan & Sally-Anne

Photos: Leanne Ware & Sally-Anne Simankowicz

ROSE GARDEN - Sally-Anne Simankowicz

With the extreme heat of Summer over what a wonderful

time to be out and in the garden enjoying nature‟s bounty.

Whether it be weeding, planting or pruning, as we will be

doing short ly in the rose garden, try to find time to just

sit, read, relax and absorb.

Signs at Sydney BG tell their own s tory Gareth conducting a bee walk Early days from the Rosser Ga rden


Protea: a guide to cultivated species and varieties by Lewis J. Matthews

NOTE: in spite of its title, this beautiful book refers to the whole Family Proteaceae, wor ld-wide, not just

the African genus we know as Protea.

A Latitude 20 book, published in 2016 by the University of Hawai‟i,

Honolulu, this is Lewis Matthews‟ fifth book on this topic. Lew now lives

on the Gold Coast and is an Australian Plants group member of the

Friends. We thank him most sincerely for this generous donation to our

library.

F irst of a ll, it is difficult to decide whether to describe this book as a

reference book or a „coffee-table book‟. The quality of the author‟s

colour photographs which adorn each page, easily put it in the coffee-

table book c lass. However it is the depth of infor mation it contains that

makes it an excellent reference for the Proteaceae.

This ancient family contains more than 850 species (in 42 genera)

from Australia, 400 species (in 14 genera) in Africa, 90 species in

Central and Southern America while the rest of the 1500 species are

scattered through Madagascar, New Guinea, New Caledonia, SE Asia,

China, India and New Zealand. It is an exciting experience to see

representatives of all these Gondwanan plants brought together here.

The first sections of the book deal with the requirements for successful

cultivation of the Proteaceae (site selection, weeds, pruning, pests and

propagation), their uses in the garden (inc luding lists of various-height plants

from ground-covers to the trees in the „screening‟ and „shelter‟ sections, and in the genera descriptions).

Planting for seasonal colour and picking, and their value as bird-attractors and cut flowers are a lso

highlighted.

The main section of the book is an alphabetical listing of genera with descriptions of the characteristics of

many species, varieties and garden hybrids from Adenanthos, through A lloxylon, Banksia, Buckinghamia,

Dryandra, Grevillea, Hakea, Isopogon, Lomatia, Macadamia and Persoonia, to Stenocarpus and Telopea –

and those are just the Australian genera!

Finally, there is a comprehensive g lossary, a list of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta with significant

collections of Proteaceae, wholesale and retail nurseries (inc luding mail-order) and Protea Associations

around the wor ld.

Importantly, there is a lso a link to the online library of the author‟s professional images available at:

www.matthewsbotanicalimages.com

Details:

216 pages

over 350 colour photos

index

ISBN 9780824856700

Book Review ~ with Lyn Reilly

Paper wasp nest Grevillea ‘Blood O range’ Pic Laura

Flow ers by Friends

http://www.matthewsbotanicalimages.com


Butterflies & Moths in the Gardens ~

Josephine Romeo It has been very exciting this Autumn with the

discovery of the Caterpillar of the Richmond

Birdwing Butterfly on the Birdwing Vine Plant

(Pararistolochia praevenosa) which grows on the

fence bet ween the units and the gardens in the

Mangroves to Mountains area. I have not been able

to find where it has pupated but they usually leave

the vine so it may be anywhere. It will not hatch

until October now but we can look forward to more

visits from the Butterfly in Spring. There have been many small grass yellow Butterflies

around lately which can often be found on the Paper

Daisies near the Friends Centre. The white Jezebels

are a lso around during Autumn. As winter

approaches, there is not much action from the

Butterflies. Butterflies are cold blooded insects and

migrate north to war mer areas in winter or spend

winter as a Caterpillar or Pupa. The Butterfly Trail Walk for the Public is held on the

first Tuesday of the month, meeting at 9am at the

Friends Centre. The next one will be on 7th August

(not on during the winter months of June and July).

I usually do the walk on a week ly basis for C limate

Watch recording and Friends are quite welcome to

join me. There were quite a few visitors joining us

on the Walk during the Commonwealth Games

which was encouraging. I have included the Moths in the research I am

doing now in the Gardens as there are quite a few.

We found many of these colourful caterpillars on

the Orchrosia minima. I hatched a couple at home

and they are these scary looking Hawk Moths.

Saturday 6th

October, 2018 Emerald Lakes

Golf Club

20th Anniversary Dinner20th Anniversary Dinner

20th Anniversary Dinner20th Anniversary Dinner20th Anniversary Dinner

Celebrating the Past

Looking Towards the Future

Save the

date


DICK’s CHALLENGE #12

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8

9 10

11

12 13 14 15

16

17 18

19 20 21

22

23 24 25 26

27 28

29

30 31

Across

1 Famous Australian poet, author & environmentalist

(surname)

4 Feather leaved herb, great on your fish or sa lad

8 Historic town on the Murray river

9 ..... flower, perennial white, pink or mauve flowers

common in GCRBG

10 An „airwalk‟ on the Avon Valley, Tasmania

11 A small is land

12 „of the South‟

15 Darling ....., rich Q ld agricultural region

17 A bud under the bark of a tree which can sprout

after a fire

18 „Alt ernative‟ town of northern NSW

19 Communication between different people or parties

20 ...... Point, the First F leet‟s astronomer for whom a

Sydney suburb is named

22 A small is land for med on a Coral Reef

23 .... Point, suburb of the Redc liffe peninsular

25 A sharp protective structure on a plant

27 One of the threatened cockatoos

29 The prongs on a garden fork

30 A microc limate can create this in your garden

31 Matthew Flinders‟ Botanical artist

Down

1 ...... line an ecological dividing line to

Australia‟s north

2 HMS ......... in which Matthew Flinders

circumnavigated Australia

3 Meaning „four‟

4 Bjarne ..... Norwegian forester and GCRBG

benefactor

5 Australia‟s south-western Cape

6 ........ Bush, NSW native shrub, red/pink

flowers in December

7 Damage to leaves and stems from insect

infestation

13 Underground parts of a plant

14 Spectacular National Park adjoining the

Gold Coast

15 Describes relatively few Australian trees

16 ....... Mountains, Australia‟s highest

19 Author of The Drover‟s Wife‟

21 Pandorea Vine

24 Eucalyptus cornuta, endemic to WA

26 Rose genus

28 To take action in law

Guided Walks - June 2018 to June 2019

Month Description of walk

June

2018

The World‟s Most Remarkabl e Tree – Com e and

walk amongst the world‟s most remarkable trees and

realise why our gum tree deserves that fant astic

nomination.

July

2018

Stepping Back in Time – Find out more about the

history, the people and the plants that have survived

for more than a century.

August

2018

Yugambeh – The Story of Our Country – Discover

plants that sust ained Aboriginal Australi ans for

thousands of years.

Month Description of walk

Sept

2018

This Fragile World – Take a “ rare walk” through the

Endangered Plant Trail & find out why the Ormeau

Bottle Tree and others have becom e endangered in

October

2018

Spring is here! What‟s in flower? – Walk through the

Mangroves to Mount ains loop and the Horticultural

Display Gardens where the rose garden is blooming.

Nov

2018

Destination Bushfoods Gardens – Taste the delights

of Australian bushfoods and let us introduce you to

some of the plants from whi ch native fruits com e.

Dec

2018

A Saunter for the Senses - Stimulate all 5 senses

whilst discovering the Rotary Sensory Garden and

the Closed Forest Gorge (held only on Sunday 2nd

January Due to high summer heat and humidity, there will be

no guided walks in January.

February

2019

Beat the heat and save your feet – a virtual tour of

the Botani c Gardens will be held in the air-

conditioned Fri ends Cent re inst ead of the guided

March

2019

Be Upli ft ed – Familiarise yoursel f with som e of the

amazing vegetation that is found in the beauti ful

April

2019

The Banksia Woodl and – This heathl and ecosystem

covered much of the local coast al area before the

advent of agriculture and pastoralism on the coast.

May

2019

A Discovery of History and Horti culture- Find out

about its diverse past and the living collection of this

June

2019 The World‟s Most Remarkabl e Tree .

** PO Box 5653 GCMC QLD 9726 ** Email: [email protected] **Web: www.friendsgcrbg.org.au

** Ph: 0449 561 674 ** www.facebook.com/friendsgcrbg ** 230 Ashmore Road Benowa 4217

Our thanks to City of

Gold Coast Council for

their continued

assistance with this

News letter.

coffee at the ga rdens

FbF Mother‟s Day Arrangement

Sherwood Probus „doing it on their

own‟

Enjoying refreshments and the view from

the verandah

Dick’s Challenge # 12 Solution

Across: 1. Wright 4. Dill 8. Echuca 9. Love 10. Tahune 11. Isle

12. Austral 15. Downs 17. Epicormic 18. Nimbin 19. Liaison

20. Dawes 22. Cay 23. Woody 25. Thorn 27. Glossy 29. Tynes

30. Niche 31. Bauer

Down: 1. Wallace 2. Investigator 3. Tetra 4. Dahl 5. Leeuwin

6. Christmas 7. Scale 13 Roots 14 Lamington 15. Deciduous

16. Snowy 19. Lawson 21 Wonga 24. Yate 26. Rosa 28. Sue

http://www.friendsgcrbg.org.au

http://www.facebook.com/friendsgcrbg

Documents

Friends GCRBG - GrowingGrowing MattersMatters...Friends of Gold Coast Regional Botanic Gardens Inc Growing Matters Winter 2018 P4 From the Curator - Liz Caddick Firstly I'd like to