Hiking in inland Australia provides plenty of interest for horticulturalists. After 10mm of rain, (which is a lot for these parts) the country comes alive with plants. On this hike I saw some incredible plants that grow only in the rocky ground in this desert environment. I saw an interesting plant that I was sure I had seen elsewhere. Over night I thought hard and came to the realisation I had seen in it my desert adventures in the United Arab Emirates.
Rumex vesicarius Family Polygonaceae Common Name Wild Hops as seen in the hills around Broken Hill NSW Australia.
Rumex is not a native of Australia but has become naturalised here. In the 1850’s the new Austalian’s from England wanted to explore the large landmass. (Of course our country was inhabited for some 60,000 years by our First Nations Aborigines, who knew the area well.) The only way the new Australians could to do get across the country was with Camels. So they brought camels with Afgani herdsmen, to help explore the country. These camels had the seeds of Rumex stuck in their fur. That’s how Rumex was spread across Australia. Rumex has evolved to take these dry conditions. Much of its life is lived underground and it only appears after rain, where it soon flowers and sets seed before dying back in the heat. Could be a great plant for green/brown roofs that provide insulation, water management and biodiversity in dry cities.
Rumex on a stamp from the UAE
Succulents growing in the desert around Broken Hill Actinobole uliginosum has the yellow flower the other looks is a Calandrinia sp.
Some Emus and their babies in the grasslands
Artwork from our First Nation Aborigines.
Finding Lizards on the road to Broken Hill, Tiliqua rugosa Shingle Back Lizard check the red soil in inland Australia
Check out the Sculpture Park at sunset, my grandson sitting on a sculpture.
Visit the Pro Hart art gallery
Swainsona fomosa Family Fabaceae Common Name Sturt Desert Pea