By Beatrice Hawkins
Recently a coach trip to the Queensland Garden Expo and Plant Show was enjoyed by happy group.
This Expo, held at Doomben racecourse, was spectacular and will be on the list of events to be attended next year. The numerous expert speakers from 3 different stages were entertaining and informative and seating was plentiful at these venues so they could be enjoyed in comfort.
It was a day of firsts for me starting with our stop at a park in Ipswich for morning tea.
There was a lovely tree flowering and no one seemed able to come up with a name. After some research on the web, I was told it is a yellow poinciana.
Not being a native of Queensland or even north coast N.S.W. it was not familiar to me. The red form has always been a favourite of mine and I have loved seeing them over the years when I have visited the more tropical areas of our country. Beautiful spreading trees, with a canopy of spectacular red flowers in season, they provide wonderful shade to many streets and large house yards. They are without leaves for only a very short time as they shed the old ones and new ones appear in early spring, so are really an excellent choice in tropical areas for streets, parks and large house yards. They are a tree that requires plenty of room to spread, and certainly not to be grown near swimming pools as when they shed their feathery leaves you can be sure every one will end up in the pool and consequently in the filter… a pool-keepers nightmare!
They are not for our area unless in a very protected spot and with much care and perseverance until well established, as they are frost tender, but are certainly very beautiful. The yellow form in full flower would be equally as spectacular as the red and I will endeavour to return to the Ipswich park to see it in full flower.
The next treat was Doomben racecourse. A beautiful venue for the Expo with wonderful shade trees and buildings to house the many exhibitors. The variety of stalls was huge and the number of plants that were brought home testified to this. I have never seen such a range of bromeliads before in one place and one lucky traveller took one home as a prize in our raffle.
Another wonderful plant I found for a friend who was unable to attend, was a white bat flower.
These unusual plants are a member of the yam family and would make an unusual addition to your range of indoor or shade house plants. Another expert tells me that it should be treated as an orchid with regard to watering, position and potting.
The advice here was that they are quite easily grown with some knowledge and repay the effort with their spectacular flowers and large glossy green leaves.
Their common name is derived from the unusual flowers that really resemble a flying bat with its black face and white “ears”. The black form is even more eerily “bat” like.
This is a big year for the Warwick Horticultural Society as on April 3rd it will be 110 years since it was formed and there are a range of events planned for throughout the year. We are one of, if not the oldest society in Queensland and, with the possible exception of some of the war years, have been meeting continuously for all that time.
The next event is the annual free information evening to be held in the CWA rooms on the evening of Wednesday May 30th. The speaker this year will be well known horticulturist, Brian Sams. He is a very down to earth and entertaining speaker and a fund of knowledge on all aspects of gardening. We are very fortunate to have an expert of this calibre in our area and speaking at a FREE information evening. Supper will be served and there will be time for questions. Put the date in your diary and plan to attend what will be a really enjoyable evening. All are welcome.
*This is an old article that has been digitised so our readers have access to our full catalogue.
