Tag Archives: Plant

Mondo Grass

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Mondo Grass

Swishy sway.

  • Mondo grass is an evergreen, small grassy plant.
  • Mondo grass is also known as fountain plant, monkey grass, dragon’s beard and snake’s beard and its official name is Ophiopogon japonicus.
  • Mondo grass is native to Japan.
  • Mondo grass plants range from 10 – 30 cm (4 – 12 inches) in height, depending on the variety.
  • Mondo grass produce small white or pale lilac coloured flowers.

Mondo Grass, Lily, Japanese, Dragons beard, Fountain, Row, Australia, Ten Random Facts

  • Mondo grass produces a blue berry which is about 5 mm (0.2 inches) in diameter.
  • Mondo grass is used in traditional Chinese medicine.
  • Some people use Mondo grass as an aquatic plant, which normally dies if not kept in the right underwater temperature.
  • Mondo grass blooms in late Spring and early Summer.
  • Although some people think Mondo grass is a type of grass, it is actually a type of lily.
Bibliography:
Ophiopogon Japonicus 16 July 2012 , Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophiopogon_japonicus>

Alyssum

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Alyssum

Sweet small flowers.

  • Alyssum is also known as sweet alyssum or sweet alison.
  • Alyssum is an annual flowering, small, bushy plant that grows to about 5 – 30 cm (2-12 inches) in height.
  • Alyssum’s scientific name is Lobularia maritima or Alyssum maritimum, which comes from the Greek words meaning ‘small pod’ and ‘marine’.
  • Alyssum has clusters of small flowers, approximately 5 mm in diameter, with four petals.
  • Alyssum has flowers that are white, pink, rosey red, violet or lilac in colour.

Alyssum, White, Flower, Plant, Australia, Ten Random Facts

  • Alyssum flowers have a sweet smell and are pollinated by insects.
  • In its natural environment, alyssum is commonly found growing on beaches or sand dunes.
  • In civilisation, alyssum is commonly found growing in cracks or walls.
  • Alyssum often self seeds in the garden and is commonly found popping up in unexpected places.
  • Alyssum is native to coastal areas and islands in and surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, as well as the European islands in the North Atlantic Ocean.
Bibliography:
Lobularia Maritima 3 February 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobularia_maritima>

Avocado

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Avocado

The pear shaped fruit and trees.

  • Avocados are native to Central Mexico and are also known as alligator pear or avocado pear..
  • Avocado trees are flowering plants from the family Lauraceae, the same family of cinnamon, camphor and bay laurel.
  • Avocado fruit have black or green, smooth or bumpy skin, depending on the variety, a large seed inside, and soft, creamy yellow to green flesh.
  • Avocado trees grow up to 20 meters (66 feet) in height and are often started from a pit, initially grown indoors.
  • Avocado fruit can grow from 7 cm (2.8 inches) to 20 cm (7.9 inches) long.

Avocado, Green, Vegetable, Fruit, Lots, Ripe, Ten Random Facts

  • Avocado fruit mature on the tree and then drop to the ground and ripen.  Once the avocado is cut, the flesh quickly turns brown.
  • Mexico grows more than one billion kilograms of avocado fruit per year, the most in the world.
  • Avocado fruit are rich in vitamins B, E and K, and potassium, and are high in fibre.
  • Avocado fruit and parts of the plant are toxic to many animals, including some birds.
  • Avocados are normally eaten raw in salad and on sandwiches, and in some countries combined to make juice, desserts, drinks, and dips.  Sometimes it is served cooked in certain dishes.
Bibliography:
Avocado 31 January 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avocado>

African Daisy

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African Daisy

Don’t get dazy with daisies.

  • African daisies are flowering plants from the sunflower and daisy family, Calenduleae and include approximately 50 species.
  • African daisies are also known as South African, Cape or blue eyed daisies.
  • The scientific name of the African daisy is Osteospermum and all plants in this species are perennials although they do not like freezing conditions.
  • The scientific name of the African daisy, Osteospermum, comes from the Greek and Latin words ‘osteon’, meaning bone, and  ‘spermum’,  meaning seed.
  • African daisies have white, cream, pink, purple, mauve or yellow flowers

African Daisy, Cape, Pink, White, Ten Random Facts, Australia

  • The perennial African daisies, Osteospermum, are often confused with the annual, Dimorphotheca, which have a more orange and yellow flower colour range.
  • African daisies are native to Africa.
  • Some cultivars of the African daisy have fascinating spoon shaped petals.
  • African daisies thrive in sunny and warm habitats.
  • New species of the African daisy are still been discovered.
Bibliography:
Osteospermun 19 January 2013 , Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osteospermum>

Grevillea

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Grevillea

There not the best brush!

  • There are over 360 species of grevillea.
  • Grevillea are evergreen, flowering plants from the family “Proteaceae’.
  • Grevillea can grow from 50 cm (20 inches) to 35 meters (115 feet) tall.
  • Grevillea is native to Australia, New Guinea, New Caledonia, Sulawesi and Indonesia.
  • Grevillea is also known as spider flower, silky oak and toothbrush plant.

Grevillia, Orange, Yellow, Brush, Flowers, Quensland, Australia, Ten Random Facts

  • The flowers of grevillea are long and brush like and can be yellow, orange or red in colour.
  • Grevillea is named after Charles Francis Greville, one of the founders of the Royal Horticultural Society.
  • Grevillea flowers contains a sweet nectar that humans can drink, depending on the cultivar, as some of them have nectar containing poisonous cyanide.
  • Grevillea flowers attract many birds and insects, especially honeyeaters.
  • Grevillea bloom all year round and are popular garden plants.
Bibliography:
Grevillea 8 December 2012, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grevillea>

Lantana

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Lantana

Nasty and nice!

  • Lantana is a perennial shrub consisting of approximately 150 species.
  • Lantana belongs to the verbena family, ‘Verbenaceae’ and range in size from 50 cm (1.6 ft) to 2 metres (6.6 ft) tall.
  • The flowers of the Lantana are in small clusters, and can be yellow, orange, red, pink, purple and white or a mixture of these.
  • Lantana blooms most or all of  the year depending on the plant species and the weather.
  • The fruits of Lantana are black with one seed and are prized by birds, which is one of the major causes of the spread of the plant.

Lantana, White, Flowers, Weed, Queensland. Australia, Ten Random Facts, Many

  • Lantana was introduced to Australia before the 1850s, and has become one of its major pests.
  • The leaves from Lantana are poisonous to most animals.
  • In Australia, lantana covers millions of hectares of pasture, natural bushland and  forests.
  • Lantana flowers are attractive to bees and butterflies , and some types of weaver birds use them to decorate their nests.
  • Lantana is native to the tropical regions of North and South America and Africa.
Bibliography:
Lantana n.d, Weeds Australia, <http://www.weeds.org.au/cgi-bin/weedident.cgi?tpl=plant.tpl&ibra=all&card=S03>
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