The Australian Plants Society - NSW

The Australian Plants Society - NSW We are a network whose members have a passion for growing, learning about, and conserving Australian native plants. http://austplants.com.au/

The aims of the Society are:
* To foster and promote appreciation, study and participation in growing and propagating Australian native plants
* By lawful means, foster, support and promote the preservation and conservation of Australian native plants
* To encourage the use of Australian native plants in home gardens and public places
* To improve native plants as garden subjects
* To interes

t nurserymen in propagating & supplying
Australian native plants to the public
* To increase and disseminate general knowledge of Australian plants. The aims are broad and allow us to respond to changing needs and priorities and to encompass all aspects of Australian plants.

Conostylis aculeata, known as Prickly Conostylis, is a low clumping ground cover that throws up cheerful star flowers ov...
25/08/2026

Conostylis aculeata, known as Prickly Conostylis, is a low clumping ground cover that throws up cheerful star flowers over a long season. The blooms open from soft, woolly yellow buds and sit just above narrow, tufted foliage, and massed together they form a bright, w**d suppressing carpet. It is a Western Australian native that has proved itself a tough and reliable performer in gardens well beyond its home range. Give it a sunny, well drained spot and it asks for very little. Once established it needs little to no extra watering, which makes it a fine choice for a low maintenance, water wise garden.

Photo Jeff Howes

The Hairpin Banksia (Banksia spinulosa) lights up the cooler months with golden flower spikes that glow against fine, de...
24/08/2026

The Hairpin Banksia (Banksia spinulosa) lights up the cooler months with golden flower spikes that glow against fine, deep green foliage. Each cylindrical spike is packed with nectar, which is exactly why it draws in wildlife. In this photo a Rainbow Lorikeet has dropped in for a feed, a common and very welcome sight wherever these banksias grow. It is a tough, adaptable plant for most Sydney gardens, happy in full sun to light shade and well drained soil. Keep phosphorus low and it will reward you with years of winter colour and visiting birds.

Photo Jeff Howes

Philotheca myoporoidesPhilotheca myoporoides, the Long leaf Wax Flower, is one of the most reliable of our native wax fl...
22/08/2026

Philotheca myoporoides

Philotheca myoporoides, the Long leaf Wax Flower, is one of the most reliable of our native wax flowers, opening masses of white star shaped flowers from pink buds along its stems. The petals have a waxy sheen that holds up well, and the aromatic foliage releases a citrus scent when brushed, a reminder that this is another member of the native citrus family. It is a favourite for cut flowers and for drawing native bees. Hardy and adaptable, it is happy in sun to part shade in well drained soil and responds well to a prune after flowering to stay bushy.
Photo Alan Fairley

Persoonia oxycoccioides hybridThis is a geebung, genus Persoonia, and appears to be a natural hybrid involving Persoonia...
22/08/2026

Persoonia oxycoccioides hybrid

This is a geebung, genus Persoonia, and appears to be a natural hybrid involving Persoonia oxycoccioides. The geebungs are recognised by their small tubular yellow flowers with neatly recurved tips, followed by fleshy fruit that feeds birds and mammals. This one carries the fine, crowded, prickly foliage typical of the smaller mountain geebungs. Persoonias prefer well drained, low nutrient soils and dislike phosphorus, so keep them clear of standard fertilisers, and in a sunny, sharp draining spot they are tough and long lived.
Photo Alan Fairley

Patersonia sericeaPatersonia sericea, the Silky Purple Flag, opens three broad violet petals above tufts of narrow, gras...
21/08/2026

Patersonia sericea

Patersonia sericea, the Silky Purple Flag, opens three broad violet petals above tufts of narrow, grass like leaves. Each flower is fleeting, often lasting only a day, but the plant produces them in succession through spring so the display carries on. The silky hairs on the flower stems give the species its name and catch the light beautifully. It suits a sunny to lightly shaded position in well drained soil and works well massed among grasses or at the front of a native border, where established clumps stay hardy and low maintenance.
Photo Alan Fairley

Nicotiana forsteriNicotiana forsteri is one of our native tobaccos, a soft, sticky, hairy plant that sends up sprays of ...
20/08/2026

Nicotiana forsteri

Nicotiana forsteri is one of our native tobaccos, a soft, sticky, hairy plant that sends up sprays of pale cream tubular flowers. The blooms open toward evening with a light scent that draws moths, and the plant often appears quickly on disturbed or recently burnt ground as a natural pioneer. Every part contains alkaloids and is toxic if eaten, so it is one to admire rather than handle. It is short lived and self seeds readily, so treat it as a fast, temporary filler in an open, sunny bed.
Photo Alan Fairley

Melichrus urceolatusMelichrus urceolatus, the Urn Heath, takes its name from the small urn shaped cream flowers tucked a...
19/08/2026

Melichrus urceolatus

Melichrus urceolatus, the Urn Heath, takes its name from the small urn shaped cream flowers tucked along its stems in the leaf axils. The leaves are stiff and sharply pointed, giving the whole plant a prickly, architectural look, and it flowers through the cooler months when little else is out. The nectar feeds insects and small honeyeaters. It prefers a sunny, well drained spot and tolerates poorer sandy soils, rewarding patience rather than pampering.
Photo Alan Fairley

Leucopogon fraseriLeucopogon fraseri, known as Fraser's Beard-heath, is a low growing shrub with small stiff pointed lea...
18/08/2026

Leucopogon fraseri

Leucopogon fraseri, known as Fraser's Beard-heath, is a low growing shrub with small stiff pointed leaves and tiny white tubular flowers that are bearded with fine hairs inside, which is exactly where the beard-heaths get their name. The flowers are followed by small orange to red fruit that are sweet and edible, long valued as a bush food. It does best in a sunny, well drained position and suits rockeries or native ground cover plantings. Once established it handles dry spells with ease.
Photo Alan Fairley

Leionema ambiensLeionema ambiens is a shrub of the native citrus family, Rutaceae, carrying dense clusters of small crea...
17/08/2026

Leionema ambiens

Leionema ambiens is a shrub of the native citrus family, Rutaceae, carrying dense clusters of small cream star flowers along its stems. As with others in the group the foliage is faintly aromatic when crushed, and the massed flowers are a quiet magnet for small native insects. Up close, the starry blooms and neat paired leaves give it real charm. It appreciates free draining soil and a sheltered position, and a light prune after flowering keeps it compact.
Photo Alan Fairley

Bauer's Mirbelia (Mirbelia baueri) is a low spreading shrublet of coastal heath and sandstone scrub, its needle-like fol...
16/08/2026

Bauer's Mirbelia (Mirbelia baueri) is a low spreading shrublet of coastal heath and sandstone scrub, its needle-like foliage smothered in spring with vivid yellow and red-marked pea flowers that make it one of the most striking small natives of the NSW coastline. Found in heath and dry sclerophyll vegetation from the Sydney region south to the Illawarra and beyond, it thrives in sandy, well-drained, acidic soils in full sun. A genuine highlight of the spring heath and well worth seeking out.
đź“· Paul Maurice

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P. O. Box 263
Kirribilli, NSW
2090

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