Featured Plants

Sassafras is a large tree, reaching between 10m to 30m high depending on conditions. In open areas it is generally shorter and with a broader canopy. The bark is grey and generally smooth, with a trunk to 1m in diameter. This tree is easily recognised by the the dark green leaves which are opposite, aromatic and coarsely toothed, to around 10cm long. They have a distinctive pleasant scent, reminiscent of nutmeg. Sassafras flowers in late winter or early spring, with white star-shaped flowers usually three per leaf axil.

The Cabbage Tree Palm is a slow-growing but long-lived palm, and can eventually reach a height of 30m or occasionally even higher. It starts out with a few fronds that appear to grow straight out of the ground, but eventually establishes a solid trunk of up to 50cm diameter. Each frond is 3m to 4m long, with a broad circular 'leaf' (lamina) about 1m across. Individually, the flowers are small but massed on the inflorescence they are a beautiful lacy feature among the leaves. Indeed, in full flower, Cabbage palms are conspicuous on the escarpment when seen from urban Illawarra kilometres away.

Prickly Rasp Fern is a medium-sized fern, with upright fronds reaching 20cm to 40cm high. Plants are long-lived and very hardy for a fern, forming colonies or stands and extending over many square metres. Colonies may be more or less dense depending on the growing conditions. The fronds are a dull dark green, and covered with decorative patterning. New foliage is often paler, and develops through a variety of reddish colours.

Red Cedar is a hardy and fast-growing deciduous tree, often deeply buttressed at the base. In urban settings it reaches 10m to 15m high with a broad, spreading crown, while in its natural habitat it can reach 40m or taller. It is very long-lived, with a lifespan of 150 to 200 years. Its compound leaves are red when young, generally reaching 20 cm long by 6 cm wide.