Pink bells

Oils aint oils and sometimes bells aint bells.

I am very familiar with the small shrub called Pink-bells (Tetratheca ciliata) because it is common in the forests of southern Victoria. Sometimes familiarity means you end up hardly noticing them even though they are a beautiful colour.

Tetratheca ciliata Pink-bells

They're very demure little flowers despite their colour because they always hang their heads.

The majority are pink but I have found white ones occasionally and they are very beautiful as well.

Tetratheca ciliata Pink-bells (white form in bud)

Tetratheca ciliata Pink-bells (white form)

Pink-bells will start flowering very soon but this week I was in the Brisbane Ranges near Geelong I noticed and photographed a very dark pink plant that I thought was Pink-bells until I had a good look at it on the computer later.

Turns out it was Tetratheca bauerifolia Heath Pink-bells, a plant I'd never seen before and didn't even know existed. It's natural habitat is stony hills so the Brisbane Ranges National Park is the perfect spot for it. It has the same shy habit as T. ciliata but the leaves are in whorls around the stem and it is a shorter plant. The flowers are a much darker pink.

Tetratheca bauerifolia Heath Pink-bells

And now I've found out that there is another beautiful Pink-bells plant in the Brisbane Ranges, Tetratheca labillardierei Glandular Pink-bells, so there's no way I'm going to ignore pink-bells when exploring the ranges again.

Wattle Day

OK, I know I've missed the official Wattle Day by 'that much' but yesterday I was in the Brisbane Ranges National Park and the wattles were flowering in massed beauty everywhere.

Golden Wattle Acacia pycnantha

The most prolific is Acacia pycnantha Golden Wattle. It lined every road we travelled and is spread throughout the National Park. It's Australia's floral emblem.

Another common wattle is the Myrtle Wattle Acacia myrtifolia. It has a shorter habit than the Golden Wattle and are often growing beneath them. One of the easiest way to identify them is to look at the leaves to see if there is a gland on one edge. In the photo below you can see this in the leaf at bottom left. I have to admit I'm just a little bit biased against Myrtle Wattle just because they look untidy. I know. I'm working on it and may need to consult a therapist.

Acacia myrtifolia Myrtle Wattle

There is another wattle I'm ambivalent about. Acacia paradoxa Hedge Wattle is very pretty but it is also very spiky and it can be a bit weedy. Hence the common name 'hedge' I suspect.

Acacia paradoxa Hedge Wattle

Another wattle I found was the Ploughshare Wattle Acacia gunnii. This wattle is a low shrub with pale flowers and the leaves are a really interesting shape.

Acacia gunnii Ploughshare Wattle.

There are about 12 more species of wattles that have been recorded in the Brisbane Ranges. I'll have to go back for another look and try not to get distracted by orchids.

Some orchids in the Brisbane Ranges

We've been home a few days and today was the first chance I've had to go bush to see what is happening locally. 

First I went to the Bert Boardman Picnic Reserve at Steiglitz, because the walking track behind it is usually interesting, and then to near the intersection of Switch Road and Ballan Road. The wattles were looking spectacular, Acacia pycnantha in particular, and there were several other interesting plants that I'll post about later but of course the orchids were flowering and they do tend to hog the limelight.

Cyanicula (Caladenia) caerulea Blue Fingers

Pterostylis nana Dwarf Greenhood

Acianthus caudatus Mayfly Orchid

Nodding Greenhood Pterostylus nutans

Cyrtostylis reniformis Small Gnat Orchid

The Small Gnat Orchids and Mayfly Orchids were prolific but very hard to see. It's easier to look for the leaves and then the flowers.

I was very pleased to find one orchid in particular. I thought at first it was a Tall Greenhood but on closer inspection it was an Emerald-lip Greenhood. Apparently smaragdyna means emerald-lip in Ancient Greek and refers to the colour of the labellum.

Emerald-lip Greenhood Pterostylis smaragdyna

Under attack

I noticed a little caterpillar on a path and went inside to get my camera. When I returned only a minute or two later the caterpillar was under attack by ants. It was wriggling rigorously and trying to escape but the ants were persistent and as I watched reinforcements arrived. It's amazing how quickly the message was passed along that there was a potential food source. As far as I could tell the caterpillar wasn't injured but maybe the ants knew more than I did.

 In the two photos below the caterpillar is still very active and so are the ants. Presumably the ants are nipping or stinging the caterpillar.