The Grevillea
The genus Grevillea is probably the most popular and widely cultivated of all of Australia's plant genera. The reasons for this are not difficult to find. The plants occur in numerous shapes and sizes so that there is a Grevillea for almost any conceivable garden situation. Added to this are the colourful flowers which, in many cases, attract birds.
Grevillea is a member of the Protea family (Proteaceae) and its close relatives include Banksia, Hakea, Isopogon and Telopea (the Waratah). Grevillea is named after Charles Francis Greville who was one of the founders of the Royal Horticultural Society in 1804. There are over 300 species in the genus, most of which are endemic to Australia but a few species occur in Papua New Guinea and islands to Australia's north.
The flowers of Grevillea species are quite small but they occur in clusters (an inflorescence) which, in some species, may consist of perhaps 100 or more individuals. The sequence of opening of each flower is similar to other members of the Proteaceae and goes through several stages:
- In bud, each flower appears as an elongated narrow tube (the perianth) comprising four segments each having an anther containing pollen at its tip.
- As the flower opens, the perianth segments separate to reveal a narrow style. Just before the flower fully opens the anthers transfer their pollen to the tip of the style (the stigma)
- Finally, the style separates from the perianth. At this stage the style and stigma, with attached pollen, is called a 'pollen presenter' (i.e. it is 'presenting' the pollen to a pollinator, usually a bird or small marsupial, which acts as the agent to transfer pollen from one flower to another for fertilisation.
The inflorescences can be quite variable in arrangement but two that are commonly recognised are the "spider" flower arrangement,in which the flower styles arise from a rounded inflorescence like the legs of a spider, and the "toothbrush" arrangement, in which the individual flowers are grouped into a short inflorescence along one side of the floral axis. Another common inflorescence, particularly in cultivated plants, is the large "brush" shape where the flowers are clustered into cylindrical racemes usually at the ends of branches where they are very conspicuous.
Grevilleas can be seen in flower at most times of the year but winter to early spring would be the peak flowering period. Following flowering, thin-walled seed pods develop, each containing one or two seeds. The pods open when the seed is mature. Seeds often have a papery wing to allow them to be distributed by the wind but this is not a universal feature. The majority of grevilleas occur in areas where bushfires are relatively frequent. Although a few can regenerate from lignotubers or epicormic buds after a fire, most are killed by fire and rely on seed germination for their continued survival.
Most grevilleas are small to medium shrubs but some are prostrate and a few can become large trees. The various species hybridise readily and most of the named cultivars and hybrids available in nurseries have resulted from chance hybridisation. Some deliberate breeding is being undertaken by Grevillea enthusiasts.
One of the great features of grevilleas in gardens (apart from the colourful flowers) is that many attract honey-eating birds which act as pollinators for the plants. A number of species rely on other methods of pollination, eg, beetles, moths, bees, ants, and even small marsupials.
Inveresk Park
Inveresk Park is a very popular neighbourhood park designed as an integral feature of the surrounding residential area. The park provides recreation opportunities and enhancement of local amenity and streetscape. The objective of this park is provision of safe play areas especially for children under surveillance of adults. This park features a dedicated children’s playground. Inveresk Park contains one of the most significant indigenous remnant populations in the Strathfield area. The remaining natural vegetation has been reduced to individual mature trees including Grey Box (Eucalyptus moluccana), Wollybutt (Eucalyptus lognfolia), White Stringybark (Eucalyptus globoidea)¸Broad-leaved Ironbark (Eucalyptus fibrosa) and Turpentine (Syncarpia glomulifera) Together these trees represent the last vestiges of the once extensive Turpentine-Ironbark and Tall Forest in this area.
George Begg Vickery (1865-1938) of ‘Inveresk’ Coventry Road Strathfield was one of Australia’s wealthiest men, leaving an estate of £435 826 upon his death. Vickery was the son of Ebenezer Vickery MLC (1827-1906), a prominent and wealthy businessman with interests in mining and farming. After his father’s death in 1906, George Vickery was the manager of the family businesses. After the death of George Vickery in 1938, his son Ottamar developed plans to subdivide the grounds of ‘Inveresk’ for residential development. The ‘Inveresk Estate’ created residential lots in the the eastern section of Merley Road and a sizeable public recreation area, a donation to Council by Ottamar Vickery. In appreciation of this gift, Council offered Vickery naming rights of the new park and suggested ‘Vickery Park’. Vickery, however, preferred ‘Inveresk Park’, the name of his father’s home in Strathfield. (Reference: Cathy Jones, Parks, Reserves & Memorials of Strathfield, 2004).
[Thanks to the Australia Native Plants Society (Australia) and Strathfield Council for this information]
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