 | Common name | Hickory, Lightwood |
Scientific name | Acacia implexa |
Family | Fabaceae |
Relatives | Other wattles, mimosa |
Habitat | Dry forest |
Local example | Burragate |
Notes | Small tree, distinguished from Blackwood (A. melanoxylon) by a lack of fine leaf veins and the 'funicle', which connects the seed to the pod, being bunched up one end of the seed, rather than encircling the seed. Also flowering now is A. obtusifolia, a tall shrub with cylindrical flower spikes, common in drier post-fire communities on the ranges. |
 | Common name | Tree Baeckea |
Scientific name | Babingtonia pluriflora (syn. Baeckea virgata) |
Family | Myrtaceae |
Relatives | Tea tree, eucalypts, lilly pilly, guava etc |
Habitat | Moist eucalypt forest gullies, watercourses |
Local example | Burragate, Nullica |
Notes | Handsome tall shrub, distinguished from tea trees by opposite leaves. |
 | Common name | Apple Berry |
Scientific name | Billardiera scandens |
Family | Pittosporaceae |
Relatives | Pittosporums, Blackthorn |
Habitat | Forest |
Local example | Widespread; Burragate, Nullica |
Notes | One of the tastier bush foods, ripe berries reminiscent of apricot. |
 | Common name | Australian Blackthorn |
Scientific name | Bursaria spinosa ssp lasiophylla |
Family | Pittosporaceae |
Relatives | Apple Berry, Pittosporums |
Habitat | Forest, especially beside watercourses |
Local example | Towamba River, Myrtle Creek |
Notes | From latin 'bursa' = purse, alluding to fruit shape. Popular with native bees and wasps. |
 | Common name | Devil's Twine |
Scientific name | Cassytha pubescens |
Family | Lauraceae |
Relatives | Camphor Laurel, Avocado, Bolly Gums etc |
Habitat | Eucalypt forest |
Local example | Burragate |
Notes | A rootless stem hemiparasite, the branches attach to its host via special organs called haustoria. A single plant can parasitize several different host plants, including itself. The berry-like fruit is edible. |
 | Common name | Blueberry Ash |
Scientific name | Elaeocarpus reticulatus |
Family | Elaeocarpaceae |
Relatives | Black Olive-berry, other Elaeocarpuses (mostly tropical), Sloanea spp |
Habitat | Eucalypt forest, rainforest margins |
Local example | Big Jack Mountain, Nullica |
Notes | Belongs to a 'Gondwana' family, with relatives in South America. The present distribution of Elaeocarpus extends right around the Pacific Rim. |
 | Common name | Wombat Berry |
Scientific name | Eustrephus latifolius |
Family | Luzuriagaceae |
Relatives | Scrambling lily (Geitonoplesium) |
Habitat | Moist forest |
Local example | Burragate, Nullica |
Notes | The edible crunchy tuber below the plant was eaten by Aborigines. |
 | Common name | Trailing Guinea Flower |
Scientific name | Hibbertia empetrifolia |
Family | Dilleniaceae |
Relatives | Other Hibbertias |
Habitat | Forest |
Local example | Nullica |
Notes | A low shrub, one of several local Hibbertias. |
 | Common name | River Lomatia |
Scientific name | Lomatia myricoides |
Family | Proteaceae |
Relatives | Grevillea, Banksia, Geebung etc |
Habitat | Watercourses |
Local example | Towamba River, Myrtle Creek, Burragate |
Notes | An attractive riparian shrub bearing non-woody pods and winged seeds similar to the (related) Waratahs. |
 | Common name | Purple Loosestrife |
Scientific name | Lythrum salicaria |
Family | Lythraceae |
Relatives | Other Lythrums, Cuphea, Crepe Myrtle |
Habitat | Watercourses and wetlands |
Local example | Towamba River, Burragate |
Notes | A talll showy herb, often growing with sedges and rushes. Has square stems and opposite leaves. |
 | Common name | Narrow-leaved Geebung |
Scientific name | Persoonia linearis |
Family | Proteaceae |
Relatives | Grevillea, Banksia, Waratah etc |
Habitat | Eucalypt forest |
Local example | Burragate |
Notes | The genus Persoonia is endemic to Australia, and is unusual in Proteaceae in lacking the fine 'proteoid' roots of other genera. They bear soft berry-like fruit, which is also unusual in the family. The fruit is edible, though you're supposed to wait till it falls off the tree. Otherwise it's pretty horrible. At higher elevations, the larger P. silvatica Forest Geebung - is also flowering now. |
 | Common name | Shrubby Platysace |
Scientific name | Platysace lanceolata |
Family | Apiaceae |
Relatives | Carrot, fennel, pennywort, flannel flower etc |
Habitat | Eucalypt forest |
Local example | Burragate, Nullica |
Notes | A locally common shrub, which occurs in two quite different round-leaved and long-leaved forms. The umbel flower clusters are typical of the family. |
 | Common name | Native Raspberry |
Scientific name | Rubus rosifolius |
Family | Rosaceae |
Relatives | Rose, Brambles, Blackberry, Bidgee Widgee |
Habitat | Moist eucalypt forest and rainforest margins |
Local example | Nullica |
Notes | Found in moister habitats than the other local native raspberry R. parvifolius. Tasty fruit. |
