The Wongan Dryandra, again… 🤔 No flowers yet but a stunning display of foliage on these Banksia bella, which also can be found in the Wongan hills area, points for creative common names here 😅 tho it’s epithet referred to its beauty! Along with the other Wongan Dryandras it is a priority 4 species

So previously I shared the Banksia from Wongan, this here is the Wongan Dryandra (or the Wongan Banksia, what ever floats your goat) Banksia comosa, either way this spiky cousin it of a tree is very strange and otherworldly! It’s a priority 4 species restricted to the Wongan Hills area 😍

Meet the Banksia from Wongan Hills, Banksia wonganensis! Tho don’t get too close or it may bite, those leaves are sharp! I was climbing up part of the hill and it was just loving life clinging to the lateritic slope! Such a strange shrub! It’s a priority 4 species mainly found in Wongan Hills

The Large Dodder-Laural, Cassytha melantha! This robust parasitic vine is mostly a specialist of Eucalypts, where it can in come cases cover the crown of its host, one in the area was smothering the trunk of a Gimlet! Cassytha are such strange plants and I love em 😍

These #Ricinocarpos muricatus were in full bloom and buzzing with pollinators! This common inland species has racemose flowers with male and female structures on seperate flowers, and their fruits are rough with short hard points, which gives this species its name!

Spent Sunday up in Wongan Hills, climbing a hill of course, Mt Matilda walk trail in Wongan hills nature reserve was full of life and so many flowers (still loads more to come tho!). Was so peacefull all could hear was the wind in the trees and birds chirping all around!

Lepidobolus preissianus subsp. preissianus, a common species of the sandplains around the Perth area and all the way up to Kalbarri! They are just getting ready to flower atm, for which they have some of the prettiest displays of anthers of any Rush! At least in my opinion (photo attached)

Lyginia barbata, the Bearded Lyginia! Named for the prominent hairs fringing the floral bracts, this individual is producing its female flower with the very prominent Stigma that are often a feature of many taxa in the Anarthriaceae family or depending on what taxonomic system you use Restionaceae 🤷🏻‍♂️

Crotalaria cunninghamii all finished! Such a stunning flower on this plant!

Anigozanthos manglesii in flower at wireless hills atm!! Stunning

I tried a native host it didn’t seem to care, but this non native philodendron seems to peak the Cassytha interest! Worlds weirdest indoor plant anyone 😂 here’s hoping it takes (there’s a second seedling too!

I love our native Lomandra! The one is Lomandra sericea, the hairy leaves give them away! And the flowers, which for the most part are key for the ID. This is a widespread species and one of the many that have low growing spikes that don’t get higher than the leaves!

My Anigozanthos gabrielae is going nuts! Soo many flowers!

Nepenthes in flower! And yeah not the best smelling, smells like bad BO 😅

More Daisies!! Schoenia filifolia and myriocephalus guerinae! Very very yellow

The yellow giants are out! The Large Hibbertia, Hibbertia lasiopus are fully open atm and still plenty of flowers to come!

Based on the size of the plants this could possibly be Conostylis caricina subsp. elachys Hopper, a Priority 1 species found from Toodyay to Cunderdin, compared to the Type subsp. it is smaller! I don’t have ruler out but these plants where much smaller than what I have normally seen!

Soooo many heads but no brain between them all! Banksia polycephala, the many headed Dryandra, often growing under wandoo from Bindoon to new norcia, it is a reseeder that often grows in thickets after fire, a vast majority of this population had been burnt off but will probably sprout back up soon!

Echidna!! Such an amazing animal! Last minute spot before we left Julimar Forest! My new phones zoom is pretty good tho it still knew we were near, soon after it was back to finding termites and ants!

A very impressive display on a number of individuals of Styphelia stricta growing in one area! Found in the north and south Jarrah forests, where it seems to like areas near granite outcrops or other winter wet areas, as that’s where I commonly find this species!

Always a stunning straggly shrub to see in bloom Hakea amplexicaulis! It’s a southwest endemic named for the base of the leaves that wrap partially around the stem! Giving this shrub a very interesting appearance.

The many flowered shrub violet, Pigea floribunda (syn. Hybanthus floribunda)! Its tiny little flowers are held pendulously making them difficult to photograph! It’s a widespread small shrub throughout the south west and into New South Wales!

Grimmia laevigata (Identified by my friend @em-lamond.bsky.social ) growing directly on a rock! A very harsh habitat yet they thrive! A common species I come across on granite outcrops so nice to be able to know what it is!

Cyanothamnus ramosus in bloom! Not sure the subspecies tho, needed to be able to see the stigma shape and measure the pedicel, though its channeled leaves could make it Cyanothamnus ramosus subsp. anethifolius 🤷🏻‍♂️ either ways a tiny little botanical sapphire in the bush

In the undergrowth of the Jarrah forest Grevillea synapheae subsp. synapheae is starting to stir! This sprawling shrub is common throughout the northern jarrah forests!

The season of oversaturated purple is upon us all! Hovea pungens like all Hovea are in bloom atm, and they do their best to produce the most colour saturated flowers around this time of year! The camera just can’t do their colour justice, definitely a reason to get out into the bush😍

Such wild Camouflage on this boxer bark mantis, Paraoxypilus tasmaniensis, hiding on a granite rock!

who needs the regular 5 petals anyway, this Drosera like likes to do its own thing! Drosera heterophylla, a small erect tuberous Drosera that loves winter wet areas like these granite outcrops!

Granite outcrops are the best and what better species than Phylloglossum drummondii to come across! One of the few members of the Lycopodiaceae here in WA! Specialists of shallow granite outcrop soils, where they die back to small underground tubers that somehow survive being baked over summer!!

So hoping this Cassytha takes 😅 still growing tho so hopefully soon