Balancing Act
Plant and moth work out their differences
It is always delight when plants put out flowers. I haven’t had much success with the species in my collection; they are mostly rainforest trees and are not usually confined to pots. Despite that, a few have done their thing. It doesn’t matter whether these flowers are showy or dowdy. All flowers are beautiful…although some might be beautiful in their own way. (Yes, I’m looking at you, Gastrodia.)
A Bloomfield Penda (Xanthostemon verticillatus, Myrtaceae) has produced a few of its exuberant sea-urchin flowers, and the two Cape York hibiscus (Hibiscus macilwraithensis and H. tozerensis, Malvaceae) regularly put out delicate vase-shaped blooms. The Sankowskya stipularis (Picrodendaceae) has tiny clusters of tinier flowers. Even the Daintree Pine (Gymnostoma australianum, Casuarinaceae)* has little bunches of reddish fluff at the end of its stems.
While most of the plants are struggling in the cool and overcast Wet Season, a few have taken to it with aplomb (or possibly a plum). Along with the Daintree Pine, the Atherton Sauropus or Pumpkin Fruit (Breynia macrantha, Phyllanthaceae) has flowered and fruited as if it’s going out of fashion. (It’s not going out of fashion.)
