110 AUSTRALIAN TREES AND SHRUBS. 



themselves to meet new conditions. Do they still continue 

 to flower according to the Australian season or is there a 

 change noticeable to enable them to fit in with northern 

 conditions ? In the case of plants grown under glass they may 

 continue the Australian habit ; but plants grown out of doors 

 and fully exposed to the weather appear gradually to adapt 

 themselves to their environment and flower earlier or later. 

 In this connection I may quote from the " Indian Forester " 

 (VIII., 1882) General Morgan's account of the remarkable 

 changes in the period of flowering of Acacia dealbata. He 

 says in the Nilgiris the acacias flowered at first in October, 

 which is the month in which the parents flower in Australia. 

 In 1860 they began to flower in September ; in 1870 they 

 flowered in August ; in 1878 in July, and in 1882 in June, 

 which is the spring month in the Nilgiris corresponding with 

 October in Australia. 



The observations here recorded by General Morgan do not 

 appear to coincide with the general experience in regard to 

 the flowering of the Silver Wattle in Europe. The change 

 in the flowering occurs later and not earlier than in Australia. 

 For instance, in the Riviera the wattles usually flower from 

 December to February, \vhile out of doors in this more northern 

 climate the flowering takes place still later, viz., from February 

 to April. This change in the flowering of Australian and 

 other plants from the southern hemisphere in order to adapt 

 themselves to the climatic conditions of the northern hemis- 

 phere is an interesting subject and deserves fuller investi- 

 gation. 



OTHER AUSTRALIAN TREES AND SHRUBS. 



Among other Australian trees and shrubs more or less 

 hardy along the South Coast are several genera of Proteaceae 

 which deserve mention. The more notable of these are 

 Grevillea, Banksia, Hakea, and Telopea. None of these are 

 native of any part of the northern hemisphere. In Australia 



