128 
The Garden Magazine, April, 1823 
CHRISTMAS BELLS 
A fascinating member of the Lily family is Blandfordia 
flammea var. princeps with its clustered drooping bells 
edged with yellow and ranging in color from bright 
orange-red to red-brown 
some of the sandy islands immediately off the coast. Shrubs are plentiful and 
the variety is great though on the whole their blossoms are much less conspicuous 
and their garden value inferior to their congeners of Western Australia. Epacris 
is an exception and this is the genus best known to us among the East Australian 
shrubs though of the 30 known species less than a dozen are in cultivation 
to-day. 
Epacris is the Australian analogue of the South African Erica and in general ap¬ 
pearance—habit, foliage and flowers—they are singularly alike. The Epacris are 
found in the scrub and alongside streams growing among low bushes. They are 
seldom more than a few feet tall and have slender, rigid, often erect, branches, 
small spinescent leaves and axillary tubular flowers either white, pink or red. 
They were among the first plants introduced into Europe from Eastern Austra¬ 
lia but are now less often seen than their beauty warrants. The finest is the 
variable E. impressa which is abundant in the southeast corner from South 
Australia to Tasmania. The type has pink flowers, the var. parviflora white, 
and var. longiflora red and white flowers. With smaller flowers there are in 
cultivation E. purpurascens with pink flowers. E. breviflora and E. obtusifolia 
both with white flowers. The plant grown as E. hyacinthiflora of which there 
are several color forms seems to be nothing more than a race of E. impressa, 
whilst that known as E. hybrida superba is a mixture of several varieties. It is 
very doubtful if there are any genuine hybrids. 
Of the related and much larger genus Leucopogon, readily known by its small, 
white, bearded flowers, a few species only are in cultivation. The best known 
are L. Richei and L. lanceolatus. 
Two other genera related to Epacris and worthy of mention are Richea and 
Though not of large size they are important 
timber trees; two (A. cupressoides and A. 
selaginoides ) are known as King William Pine 
and the third ( A . laxifolia ) as Red Pine from 
the color of its wood. No Yew is native of 
the austral continent but of the related genus 
Podocarpus there are several species, locally 
known as “Damsons” from their fruits. 
There are several other related genera with 
one exception ( Pberospbaera Fit^geraldii) all 
confined to Tasmania. The best known are 
the Huon Pine ( Dacrydium Franklinii ) and 
the Celery-Top Pine ( Pbyllocladus rhomboi- 
dalis), both lovely trees scarcely known to 
our northern gardens. 
' The ancient family of Cycads is repre¬ 
sented by three genera. Of Macrozamia 16 
species have been recognized but it is prob¬ 
able that some are merely variant forms. 
One of the best known is M. spiralis, wide¬ 
spread in New South Wales. Two larger 
growing species are M. Perowskiana and M. 
Moorei but the giant of the genus is M. 
Hopei, specimens of which are said to grow 
60 feet tall. This species is doubtfully 
known wild south of the tropics and the 
same is true of the curious Bowenia specta- 
bilis and B. serrulata. Cycas itself is con¬ 
fined to the tropics in Australia. Apart 
from their great botanical interest these old 
aristocrats are all handsome garden plants. 
Analogies between the Dry Regions of 
East and West Australia 
T HE drier regions reproduce many of the 
features of Western Australia; Mulga 
and Mallee scrub and also Spinifex occur. THE MOST POPULAR OF PALMS 
Various species of Xanthorrhoea are scat- From Lord Howe’s Island off the coast of Eastern Australia comes the Thatch or Umbrella Palm 
tered over the country and are a feature of (Kentia, or Howea, Forsteriana) so widely familiar in northern homes and greenhouses 
