By Beatrice Hawkins
Driving around town is a delight these weeks since the rain. Lawns and nature strips are green and lawn mowers in use everywhere. How quickly everything responds to rain at this time of the year and how good it is for everything.
One of the true beauties in full bloom at the moment are the many spectacular jacaranda trees that are evident in many places around town. They are a real sentimental favourite of mine and a great tree if you have the space. The purple canopies that are visible in so many back yards always brings a smile to my face and delight my heart. The shade they provide after the flowers have gone and the leaves appear is welcome in the summer. I know many people don’t like the “mess” of falling flowers but I delight in the purple carpet! Maybe I wouldn’t be so keen if I had a tree in my back yard and had to cope with the clean up.
Jacarandas are a native to Central and South America and seeds came from there on early sailing ships. Gardeners were largely unsuccessful in growing them however although fresh seeds readily germinate. The problem was Australia is a long way from South America and the seeds were anything but fresh by the time they arrived. Australia was fortunate, in my opinion, that a visiting captain gave a jacaranda plant or seeds to Walter Hill, the first curator of the Queensland Botanical gardens and this was planted at there in 1864. This tree is probably the source of most of the trees that now grow throughout this country.. doubtless with gene tracing technology now available this could be proved instead of just alluded to by patriotic Queenslanders!
While trees usually live for about 50 years many live much longer and this original tree was 116 years old when it was blown over and destroyed in the 1980 with a section of the trunk retrieved and on display in the Museum of Brisbane in the City Hall. Jacaranda wood is a lovely blond colour and a treat for wood turners.
As a native of N.S.W., I always loved the Grafton Jacaranda Festival but it is thought that while they may have the largest Jacaranda tree, Brisbane has many more trees and pre dates Grafton plantings by about 70 years. I tend to disagree with this time frame, as with research, I believe the first trees in Grafton were planted in 1879 when the council contracted Henry Volkers to supply trees to beautify the town. Probably the seeds for the Grafton plantings came from the original Brisbane tree. But I will concede that there are more trees in Brisbane.. after all, it is a much bigger place!!
In 1868 Michael Guilfoyle, a horticulturist in Sydney, perfected a complicated system of growing the trees from cuttings and began supplying private gardeners on Sydney’s north shore.
If you would like to have one of these glorious spring specials in your garden there is now a true dwarf variety available that can even be grown in a large pot.
There are a few things you need to be careful of when deciding on a position for your tree however, whether dwarf or full size. While they are cold and frost sensitive for the first 2 years and need protection, after that they should be right. They do have an invasive root system and regardless of my fondness for the beautiful purple canopy, the flowers and leaves would cause problems with swimming pool filters and house guttering. The fallen flowers can become slippery, especially on concrete pathways and roads, so be careful.
Another tree that has responded beautifully to the rain and is putting on a great show at present is our native silky oak. These are a species of grevillea and have the typical “tooth brush” flowers.. a tooth brush for a giant maybe!!
The brilliant orange flowers are a beautiful contrast for the purple of the jacaranda and in Tamworth they are planted as street trees together. The city is fortunate to have a lookout high above the town and at this time of the year it is worth a visit, if you are in the area, to see the ribbons of purple and orange flowing through the town.
These trees have their problems to, so be careful where you plant them, but if you have the room and don’t mind raking leaves, they are a beautiful specimen. The timber from these great trees has been made into beautiful furniture over the years. My daughter still has a table that my dad made in the early 1950’s and was used for all my time at home and is still doing good service for her family. The mantle piece in my family home growing up was also beautiful silky oak. The grain is striking.
Enjoy the current beauty in the parks and gardens around us and continue to pray for rain to really break the drought and fill our water storages and… I’m still enjoying the exercise mowing my lawn!!
*This is an old article that has been digitised so our readers have access to our full catalogue.
