Cytisus albus Hacq.

Fully-hardy, dwarf, spreading shrub with downy stems and terminal clusters of white or creamy flowers in spring and summer.  To 3m.  [RHSE, Hortus, Hilliers’].

Added on December 16 2009

Verbena x hybrida ‘White Perfection’

A cultivar of Verbena x hybrida Hort. ex Vilm., the Florists’ Verbena.  White.  ‘White Perfection’ was included in William Wood’s list of rich-coloured varieties which seems a little incrongruous.  [Gard. Chron. 1848].

Added on April 24 2009

Erythrina x bidwillii ‘Blakei’

A cultivar of Erythrina x bidwillii Lindl. which is a hybrid of Erythrina herbacea L. x Erythrina crista-galli L.  A sterile hybrid produced at Camden.  A spiny shrub with leaves composed of 3 obovate to cordiform leaflets, the terminal one larger, intermediate in habit between Erythrina herbacea L. and Erythrina crista-galli L., which see for further details.  ‘Blakei’ conforms more closely to the E. herbacea female parent in not forming a distinct trunk but a large, squat bole from which long arching shoots emerge in the spring.  It flowers on both long terminal racemes, to 30cm or so long, and smaller axillary clusters.  Our observation is that it flowers better from last season’s wood so some care in pruning will probably produce more flowers.  Well grown plants will produce a large number of flower spikes in the spring and early summer and spot flower throughout the summer.  The flower shoots are of a purplish colour and the flowers a brilliant intense red colour, approaching vermillion, much brighter than either parent, equally striking in bud and with the large standard expanded.

The un-ripened growth is quite frost tender and shoots die back in winter to the hardened, woody bole.  In frost-free conditions semi-ripened wood will survive the winter.  ‘Blakei’ forms a rounded shrub that may be 2-3 metres or more across and 2-3 metres high.  [This description is taken from observations of the sole remaining plant at Camden Park, subject to frost each year, and plants that appear identical growing in the Royal Melbourne Botanic Gardens.  These plants are growing in frost-free conditions.  See Notes below for more detail.]

Added on April 03 2009

Gladiolus ‘Brilliant’

Camden Park hybrid. (Gladiolus cardinalis x G. tristis) x Gladiolus x gandavensis hybrid.  ‘No.10.  Brilliant.  Card. trist. Gandavensis (No.22).  Robust scape large flowers 3½ - 4 in., petals too thin and rather pointed.  Colour brilliant red between(?) scarlet, pink [word indistinct] with a white stripe in centre of each upper lobe, and a little purple and [word indistinct] on lower lobes.  If the petals had not been so thin this would have been a very fine flower.  1848 3 large roots 10 offsets.’  ‘Brilliant’ was not listed in the catalogues.

Added on October 21 2009

Salvia splendens Ker-Gawl.

Half hardy, erect bushy perennial, usually grown as an annual, with long-tubed bright red flowers, enclosed in red bracts, in dense terminal spikes from summer to autumn.  To 40cm or more in some older cultivars.  [RHSE, Hortus].

Added on October 07 2009

Dendrobium speciosum Sm.

A quite variable, evergreen, semi-epiphytic orchid with stout, cylindrical pseudobulbs with oblong leaves, to 25cm long, at the ends, and dense racemes, to 60cm long, of fragrant, white, cream or dull yellow flowers, to 6.5cm across, with purple markings on the lips, in spring.  [RHSE, Jones, FNSW, Pridgeon].

Added on January 26 2010

Camellia japonica ‘Pressii’

A cultivar of Camellia japonica L., ‘Pressii’ has double flowers, the petals having a clear white ground with pink stripes.  [ICR].

Added on July 01 2009

Improvements to Hortus Camdenensis

The Hortus software has been upgraded. This led to some minor errors in the layout of plant names, particularly in the headings of Plant Profile pages but these have now been largely overcome. Improvements are also progressively being made to the content of the Hortus in three main areas, botanical and horticultural history, cross referencing and illustrations. Some enhancements will be done as the opportunity arises but most will be completed family by family. This will take at least two years to complete.

Published Sep 14, 2010 - 04:06 PM | Last updated Aug 12, 2012 - 04:36 PM

Sir William Macarthur on Vines and Vineyards

Sir William Macarthur wrote extensively on vines and Vineyards. It is our intention to publish all his writings in the Hortus.

Published Aug 01, 2010 - 04:58 PM | Last updated Oct 04, 2010 - 04:47 PM

Working Bee dates

Working Bee dates for 2012.

Published Jun 29, 2010 - 02:59 PM | Last updated Jan 10, 2012 - 05:19 PM

Open House and Gardens

Camden Park House and Gardens will be open to the public on Saturday 22nd September, 2012, from 12.00 noon until 4.00 pm, and Sunday 23rd from 10.00 am until 4.00 pm.

Published Dec 30, 2009 - 02:58 PM | Last updated Jan 09, 2012 - 05:31 PM

Letters on the Culture of the Vine Part 7: The Vintage (Continued)

Letters on the Culture of the Vine and Manufacture of Wine by Maro, pen-name of William Macarthur. Letters IX, X and XI, reproduced in Part 6, dealt with the vintage, including the theory and practice of fermentation and preparation for winemaking. The vintage is continued in Part 7, letters XII and XIII giving a description of grape harvesting and crushing. The illustration used here is an excellent lithograph showing the grape harvest at the third vineyard at Camden Park in 1878.

The entire book is reproduced in the Hortus in ten parts. For background information and Macarthur’s Introduction to the book see Part 1.

Published Sep 24, 2010 - 05:07 PM | Last updated Jul 21, 2011 - 11:14 AM

Raising Tropaeolum tricolor from seed

If you have tried growing Tropaeolum tricolor from seed you have probably encountered difficulty and obtained a low germination rate.  This was certainly my experience before I took this advice.

Published Jan 01, 2010 - 03:33 PM | Last updated Jul 30, 2010 - 03:38 PM

The Fuchsias of Camden Park

The first fuchsia introduced to English gardens in 1788 was a variety of Fuchsia magellanica Lam.  This new plant soon attracted the attention of florists and, stimulated by the regular introduction of new species and varieties from South America, selection and hybridisation saw a rapidly increasing number of named varieties available through the nurseries.  The first record of a fuchsia at Camden Park is Fuchsia conica, which arrived on board the ‘Sovereign’ in February 1831.  By 1857 fifty-eight species, cultivars and hybrids had been recorded as growing in the gardens.

Published Mar 14, 2010 - 10:50 AM | Last updated Jun 24, 2011 - 02:45 PM

Letters on the Culture of the Vine. Part 1: Introduction

‘Letters’ is an important book in the history of wine production in Australia and this is, I believe, the first time that the full text has been made available outside the major libraries. The value of William Macarthur’s book compared with earlier Colonial publications is that it is written from the perspective of over twenty years of experience of growing grapes and making wine in New South Wales. He does include theory from the pens of European authorities but the bulk of the book is written from personal experience. He is in effect saying ‘this is what we have found to work here’.

‘Letters’ is reproduced in 10 parts, beginning with the Introduction, which provides information on the history of the book and gives a synopsis of early experiences of vine importation and wine production.

Published Aug 27, 2010 - 05:50 PM | Last updated Nov 24, 2011 - 02:57 PM