Exploring habitats Down Under in Australia and New Zealand

This August I had the good fortune to head to Australia and New Zealand to visit my son who was ending his year working there. He had encouraged me to ‘come on an adventure’ while he was there. So despite it being the end of winter and heading into spring, so not ‘the best time’ to go, it fitted our timetables. We met up in Perth and from there headed to Port Douglas in the Northern Territory followed by a road trip from Auckland in North Island New Zealand.

Australia is a vast continent with climates ranging from Hot summer - Mediterranean type around Perth, Monsoon and Rainforest in the north-east around Cairns to Port Douglas while Central Australia has both hot and cold desert and Southern Australia and Tasmania are more oceanic or humid subtropical. As a result Australia has a wide diversity of habitats. Distance wise it takes a 4 hour flight to cross from west to east Australia similar to flying from the UK to a greek island. From Brisbane north to Cairns is another 2 hour flight and then a further one hour drive to Port Douglas and the world renowned rainforest.

Perth, South Western Australia

My first stop was in Perth. They were having their coldest winter there in 65 years. Temperatures were between 10 - 12C with a wind chill bringing it down to feeling like 8C. I was expecting rain some days but when it came it was long and torrential although there were some lovely sunny days as well.

Our first introduction to native vegetation was an afternoon walk in the Bold Park bushland, an area containing many different species of trees, plants and wildlife. Bright yellow, low growing wattle bushes were in flower between the open scrubby bush areas and a wide range of native trees including many varieties of eucalyptus and banksias.

The birds make themselves heard - raucous cockatoos and lorakeets in abundance! We spotted a flock of foraging black and white Carnaby cockatoos feeding on hard seed pods of some eucalyptus. Further along were two pink and white Galah perched in a eucalyptus. 

The vegetation in winter wasn’t at its most blooming or fruitful but there was plenty to look at and colour was more prolific than in our winter back home. In my cousin's garden - the jacaranda and mango trees were not yet in bloom; passion fruit were ripening; the borders displayed the early flowers of a bright orange Clivia and some bright pink potted plants brightened the patio. At the front lavender was in flower - tender plants we associate with our summer.

Another highlight was a visit to King’s Park - the botanic gardens in the centre of Perth. A magnificent avenue of eucalyptus trees is one of the notable features as are views over the central business district and Swan river. An interesting specimen of a Baobab tree is at the heart of the park. Eucalyptus and gums with blossom and seed pods are threaded through the area.

 

In flower are some of our spring flowers alongside helichrysum and various red and yellow kangaroo paws which decorated the more variety focussed borders.

Port Douglas

Next we headed to the North East coast where August and September are the best time to visit. This is an area with tropical rainforest and it is a good time to visit as the rains have passed and it warm but not humid. Quite a few people holiday here to escape the chill of winter in Sydney and New Zealand.

In Port Douglas itself there were planted palms on the main thoroughfare - for coconut oil as well as decoration. Imported from Africa they are not a native species. Heading into the Daintree rainforest there were a multitude of tree ferns, lianes and creepers as well as many smaller ferns in between the native trees. Along the river were mangroves with ‘saltie’ crocodiles lurking among their roots on the mudbanks.

The bird life was different - far fewer lorakeets, views of a kingfisher among the mangroves which edged the Daintree River and some very raucous common mynas roosting on a couple of street trees in the centre of Port Douglas.

New Zealand - North Island Road Trip

After enjoying trips to the rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef we headed south again and from Brisbane flew on to Auckland in North Island, New Zealand. Travelling north to Kerikeri we stopped at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, a significant cultural site. Here the area included native trees, open grassed areas and an ‘English’ style garden which surrounded the treaty house - daffodils, tulips, freesias, pansies and camelias. In the north clematis and jasmine were in flower and running wild on the roadside shrubs and local gardens. Jasmine and ginger can become invasive so wild areas were protected. The forest vegetation was lush and still included some tree ferns and smaller fern varieties.

Travelling south we drove through open vegetation with grassland, trees, fields and Hobbit like hills for which New Zealand landscape provided an atmospheric setting. There were some spectacularly large rich red camellias in flower in gardens, daffodils and spring flowers were starting to flower. Native trees included the Kawakawa which was traditionally used in maori medicine.

Influencers all - Australia on us and our influence on them

We are influenced by Australasian flora. Many house plants have their origins there or were introduced prior to the arrival of European settlers. Plants such as some orchids, Cordyline australis, callistemon also known as the botthlebrush, are familiar plants in our homes and gardens. More recently our interest in tree ferns have likewise become more popular in recent years.

Australia itself has not only been influenced by European settlers as seen in the ‘English Garden’ plants, but the influence of the nearer Indian and Asian countries. The age of plant finders exploring much of this area has added to the confusion of what is native and what is not, which has over layered previous maori migrations that brought fauna and flora with them to New Zealand.

Hopefully I have inspired some of you to go on an adventure and see for yourselves the glories of Australia and New Zealand. I only touched the surface of the wide variety of habitats there are to explore and that taster was very much a treasured experience.