38 Quotes About Genus-species

Showy banksiaMeaning: I am your captiveBanksia speciosa | Western Australia and Southern AustraliaSmall tree that has thin leaves with prominent 'teeth'. Cream-yellow flower spikes appear throughout the year, which store seeds until opened by fire. The flowers attract nectar-feeding birds, particularly honeyeaters.

Bat's wing coral treeMeaning: Cure for heartacheErythrina vespertilio | Central and northeast AustraliaIninti (Pit.) wood is widely used for making spear throwers and bowls. Bark, fruit and stems are used for traditional medicine. Has bat's-wing-shaped leaves, and coral-colored flowers in spring/summer. Attractive, glossy bean-shaped seeds vary in color from deep yellow to blood red, and are used for decoration and jewelry.

Green birdflowerMeaning: My heart fleesCrotalaria cunninghamii | Mid to western statesWidespread on sandy soils in mulga communities and on sand dunes, this shrub bears soft hairs on thick and pithy branches. The flower resembles a bird attached by its beak to the central stalk of the flower head; yellow-green, streaked with fine purple lines. Blooms in winter and spring. Pollinated by large bees, and birds.

Desert oakMeaning: ResurrectionAllocasuarina decaisneana | Central AustraliaKurkara (Pit.) have deeply furrowed, cork-like bark, which is fire-retardant. Slow-growing but fast to develop a taproot that can reach subsurface water at depths over ten meters. Mature trees form a large, bushy canopy. Many found in the central desert are likely to be more than one thousand years old.

Vanilla lilyMeaning: Ambassador of loveSowerbaea juncea | Eastern AustraliaPerennial with edible roots found in eucalyptus forests, woodlands, heaths, and sub-alpine meadows. Grass-like leaves have a strong scent of vanilla. Flowers are pink-lilac to white, papery, with sweet vanilla perfume. Resprouts after fire.

River LilyMeaning: Love concealedCrinum pedunculatum | Eastern AustraliaVery large perennial usually found on the edge of forests, but also at the high-tide level close to mangroves. Fragrant, white slender star-shaped flowers. Seeds sometimes germinate while still attached to the parent plant. The sap has been used as a treatment for box jellyfish stings.

Mandrake(Atropa Mandragora)If you're interested in a plant that looks like a person, has visible sex organs, is an aphrodisiac of the first order, contains mind-altering alkaloids such as hyoscyamine, has been known to cure depression and insomnia, then Atropa Mandragora is the plant for you. But be careful. More than one person who has pulled this plant out of the ground has died in the process.

Desert heath-myrtleMeaning: Flame, I burnThryptomene maisonneuvii | Northern TerritoryTraditionally, Anangu women beat pukara (Pit.) with a wooden bowl to collect dew containing nectar from the flowers. Thryptomene, derived from Greek, means coy or prudish; this bush appears modest but in winter through to spring produces a cloak of tiny white flowers with red centres, blooming as if revealing a secret.

Orange ImmortelleMeaning: Written in the starsWaitzia acuminata | Western AustraliaPerennial with long, narrow leaves, and papery orange, yellow and white flowers. Spring blooming after winter rain. En masse these flowers are spectacular. Have been found in their millions across much of the scrub and desert in the west, with people often traveling long distances to see them.