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Category Archives: Botany
Incontinence in plants
There are more similarities between plants and humans than we give credit for. Introducing the concept of incontinence in plants! Leaves are the key parts of a plant which carry out the important act of water exchange with the environment. … Continue reading
A cliffhanger of a fern, Asplenium obtusatum
I have deep respect for ferns living in harsh conditions and one such fern is Asplenium obtusatum (Shore Spleenwort). This species is also present in New Zealand but the Tasmanian form is known as A. obtusatum subspecies northlandicum, a form … Continue reading
The Lily before the lilies, Campynema lineare
In Tasmania’s heaths, herbfields, cliffs, lake margins and among cushion plant communities of the Northwestern and Central highlands lurk one of Tasmania’s most elusive botanical secrets – a little lily that hails from a botanical lineage of great antiquity. First … Continue reading
Endemic Daisybushes, endemic hybrids?
Hybridization as a means of making new species is not an uncommon concept and hence it must be applicable to other species. I present a case using a Tasmanian example – the Olearia daisybushes. Olearia is a large and conspicuous … Continue reading
Posted in Asteraceae, Botany, Common and Unappreciated, Hypotheses, Key Characters, Plant Morphology, Shrubs, Tasmanian Endemics
Tagged Asteraceae, central highlands, Central Plateau, daisybush, Geebung Daisybush, hybridization, Olearia persoonioides, Olearia pinifolia, Prickly Daisybush, Shrubs, subalpine woodlands
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Tasmania’s iconic orphan: the Delicate Laurel (Tetracarpaea tasmannica)
The Blue Gum (Eucalyptus globulus), Tasmanian Waratah (Telopea truncata), Deciduous Beech (Nothofagus gunnii), Myrtle Beech (Nothofagus cunninghamii) and Pandani (Richea pandanifolia) are names that are often cited by plant enthusiasts and bushwalkers guidebooks as ‘must-sees’ of Tasmania. But these five … Continue reading
Looks don’t matter: the Thamnobryum disparity
We don’t look one bit alike, but we are family. That happens to be the story of a rather obscure group of bryophytes and exemplifies how drastically molecular technology is changing how bryophyte taxonomists study and classify this fascinating group … Continue reading
A database of Tasmanian tree ring study
Tasdendro goes live! The study of tree rings or dendrochronology is the scientific method of dating the age of trees based on the patterns of tree rings. The topic of tree rings is close to my heart, particularly given that … Continue reading
Posted in Botanical History, Botany, Trees
Tagged dendrochronology, tasdendro, tree ring study, tree rings
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There’s something about Daucus
There are rather few genera of native Tasmanian plants that share the same genus as the common economic food plants we see in the market everyday. Some examples might come as a surprise however. For instance, Tasmania has one native … Continue reading
Mountain Ashes attain 500 years of age
Classical texts tell us that the Mountain Ash (Eucalyptus regnans), one of the world’s largest flowering plants can attain an age of perhaps 350-450 years. Using dendrochronological methods and radiocarbon dating, Sam Wood from the Forest Ecology Lab has found … Continue reading
Posted in Botany, Plant Appreciation, Trees
Tagged David Bowman, dendrochronology, Ecalyptus regnans, Forest Ecology Lab, Mountain Ash, Sam Wood
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Tasmanian plants 