17 replies to this topic

[Belinda]

Hi
We did our 2nd family cp hunting trip this weekend . All the family was  involved in the search even my husband and the kids - great fun.
We decided on a spot via  a topographical map roughly about 20mins from our house.
The guys from Australia previously had said not to expect too much this time of year but with the limited species we found it was quite exciting.
Anyhow   this is a pic of the swampy area at the head waters of one of the creeks in the mid blue mtns.


We found   some amazing examples of the carnivorous plants available at this time of the year in this area.
( the best thing abt kids : THEY NOTICE EVERYTHING)

Im a little reticent to advise species  (after my alba posting)  anyhow  on with the story.

what species is this?


check out this-


Everywhere we walked there were heaps of sundews





Please is this the flower of a bladderwort?


What are these ?  they were all on their own and extremely small.



A great time was had by all - geez its fun taking the camera and trying  to find cps in the wild .
Kids find most  maybe i should pay them per species - might find a few more .
Great fun ...

NO leeches this time - sprayed with the  stuff ....





regards Belinda

[Sean Spence]

Hi Belinda,

It is addictive isn't it! Pretty soon you'll be obsessed and heading off to WA in search of more.

You live in a great area for CPs and if you are enjoying searching for them now just wait a few months until the other species are out and about!

Please don't feel hesitant about having a guess at some of the names, believe me we are all here to help you out.

That's a great looking spot you have found and is typical of many of the great CP habitats on the east coast of Australia, you're lucky it is so close to home. You're also lucky to have a family that enjoys exploring with you. I'm grooming my daughter to do likewise- if only my wife would take some interest too.

Now for sme IDs.

The first 2 shots are different growth forms of Drosera spatulata. You'll come to see that this is a very common species around Sydney. The most common variations are forms with long ptioles which are usually found in very wet conditions as well as the shorter leaved forms which generally have much redder leaves and grow in drier spots

Numbers 3 and 4 are Drosera pygmaea- also very common but more difficult to find due to its minute size.

Unfortunately the next plant isn't a Utricularia but rather a small species of Autumn flowering orchid- Eriochilus cucullatus. Another great thing about Australian CPs is that they often grow in conjunction with native ground orchids- another of my favourites.

The next shot is a bit hard to make out due to the size of the plants but I'm pretty sure that these are small seedlings of D. spatulata. Upon closer inspection they could prove to be the emerging rosettes of the red form of D. peltata which is common in these areas. It is hard to tell. Do you have a closer shot of an individual rosette?

I love the last shot of the flowering D. spatulata. This species often looks its best when growing in shadier locations as this one appears to be.

Good luck on your future hunts and be sure to post your adventures here for us all to see.

[Belinda]

Much Appreciated your reply seandew, your right its most addictive .
The most fun is trying to spot the sundews as  you  walk through the scrub .
Great fun - i look forward to visiting this swamp when the conditions are more conductive to cp's.

Whats amazing to me as a relative newbie is how common the sundews actually are if you look for them ..

Your encouragement of a newbie cp'er is most appreciated..


regards belinda

I look forward to posting some new  day trips  - probaly soooner than later  

[Sean Spence]

Belinda said:

Whats amazing to me as a relative newbie is how common the sundews actually are if you look for them ..

Your encouragement of a newbie cp'er is most appreciated..

The sundews can be remarkably common in many areas. It is probably difficult for most of our overseas members to imagine just how many of them there are.

Having said that, just wait until the tuberous Drosera emerge in a couple of months, sometimes it is dificult to walk through the bush without stepping on them- literally.

I'm always happy to encourage those new to CPs, particularly those here in Australia. Despite the amount of native CP species we are blessed with in Australia there are far too few growers in this country who could care less about these native species. If you are ever looking at increasing your CP collection (which I'm sure you are ) please feel free to PM me, I'll be more than happy to help you out.

Sean.

[Belinda]

Seandew
does this help with idenitication of  some of those small sundews that arn't pygmaea
Regards Belinda
Thanks again for the encouragement....

[Sean Spence]

Yes, they are definitely seedlings of Drosera spatulata. There is also a small Drosera pygmaea to the left of the photo.

[JanW]

Hi Belinda,

great photographs! Please keep up the good work and post your shots, they are highly appreciated!

Seandew said:

The first 2 shots are different growth forms of Drosera spatulata. You'll come to see that this is a very common species around Sydney. The most common variations are forms with long ptioles which are usually found in very wet conditions as well as the shorter leaved forms which generally have much redder leaves and grow in drier spots

Hi Sean,
thats interesting. In Europe D. rotundifolia and D. intermedia share the same niches. D. intermedia is standing in the water and D. rotundifolia sitting at the edge.

Cheers,
Jan

[Dan]

Hi Guys,

I'd just like to say that the D.pelata/auriculatas are out in small numbers at this time of year if you know where to look. I found hte below patch of plants in the Castlereagh Nature Reserve (near Penrith) on easter weekend. They were growing on the bank of a small dam/pond.



No D. glanduligeras out yet though...

Cheers,

Dan.

[Sean Spence]

Geez, they certainly come out early in NSW- and they're flowering!! Did they even bother going dormant? You won't find a sign of them down here for at least another month. The plants pictured must have broken dormancy around Christmas to get to this size.

Well there you go Belinda, there is plenty more for you find around the Sydney environs at the moment...if you know where to look.

[Greg Allan]

Belinda,

Interesting photos. thanks for sharing. I'm another European grower who's very jealous of you Down Under growers with so many native species. Incidentally, whenever anyone posts habitat photos from Australia, I'm always struck by how dry the soil appears. All of the wild plants I've seen in the UK have been in swamp-like conditions.

[Mike King]

Beats our natives over there! But Shropshire still has 7 species of CP.

[Mike King]

[Binataboy]

Quote

All of the wild plants I've seen in the UK have been in swamp-like conditions.

Australia is the driest inhabited country... Tuberous Drosera can grow in fairly dry well drained spots although the soils hold some water during winter.

George

[Tim]

Don't pity yourselves too much, you Britons, there aren't any in my county!

Hey, Dan. Thanks much for your pics and comments. I trust that we will hear more from you here.

Best

[Greg Allan]

Mike,

Which seven? (I assume you're only counting the ones that live outside your back garden!)

[Langy]

Hi, Belinda

Great account of a good day out, now you are hooked, theres no turning back...

:wavey:

Langy