JCU Greenhouses and Glasshouses

JCU Greenhouses and Glasshouses

Author: John Elliott, Townsville Branch

Published: Journal June 2020

On the 15th of March, 2020, the Native Plant Society visited the Townsville James Cook University (JCU) campus to tour the greenhouses, glasshouses and some of their higher profile landscaping to see how they are utilising our native flora. Brandan Espe (Environmental Officer and propagatist extraordinaire!) began the tour in the greenhouse where a wide range of both exotic and native flora is grown, with some highlights being the Banksia plagiocarpa, Borya septentrionalis, Calytrix microphylla, Nepenthes rowaniae and Tenax and various other uncommonly cultivated species.

Here we discussed how Brandan is engaged with research into germination triggers of our native Australian flora, as well as a conservation initiative to collect and reinforce ex-situ colonies of Myrtaceae at risk of the myrtle rust Austropuccinia psidii. These actions required the attainment of a permit to collect seed and cuttings from a wide range of Queensland National Parks, that has allowed the trials, and subsequently the university, to greatly enhance their species, subspecies and variant collection.

From here we moved down to the Glasshouses, one of which is used as the university’s quarantine for potentially infected stock from both the field and other sources. The other as a ‘stove house’ to better suite a wide range of tropical species, with various members of the Utricularia, Lobelia, Hydnophytum, Dischidia and others, coming together to build a tropical dream collection.

Of particular interest in this facility was the complex Nepenthes hybrid containing a parental representative of every Nepenthes species in Australia, the specimen itself coming from wild collected seed and so being one of the most complex native Australian hybrids held in any collection.

We then visited the Science Place to see a mature Acacia homaloclada, a vulnerable species from the Hinchinbrook region with a white waxy trunk, stem and leaves, before returning to our start point via the new Central Plaza, a landscape dominated by Vitex trifolia, Cymbopogon bombycinus and Scaevola aemula and scattered with the vulnerable blue cycad, Cycas cairnsiana

 

Banksia plagiocarpa seedlings

Banksia plagiocarpa seedlings

Brandan with NPQ Townsville members

Brandan with NPQ Townsville members

Other plants of note we came across were the Senna magnifolia, a golden flowered prolific perennial bush, the stout Acacia wickhamii, the tablelands form of Grevillea dryandra in flower and the fabled black flowered Grevillea venusta.

As you will have gathered, this was a whirlwind visit, with a great deal of information to absorb and reflect on. Brandan has done an amazing job at sourcing and propagating as many as 900 species over the years, which includes nine Vulnerable species. All of this is aimed at the further environmental enhancement of the JCU Campus, and if Brandan’s enthusiasm is anything to go by then we will have a humdinger of a botanic garden on our doorstep in the near future.

A big thank you to Brandan for spending his Sunday morning in guiding and interpreting!

Sadly this was our last outing for the foreseeable future, but the plants will still be growing, and we will be back bigger and better than ever.

Townsville NPQ will also celebrate its 50th anniversary in June 2020.

Find out more about the Townsville branch here.

Senna magnifolia

Senna magnifolia

Brandan with Nepenthes

Brandan with Nepenthes

Nepenthes

Nepenthes