If you have been wondering what to do in these uncertain times and want to avoid crowds, why not visit Noosa Botanic Gardens?
Now is the perfect time as there are many interesting trees flowering, including the Pink Euodia, the white flowering Mu Oil and the large purple flowering Queen Crepe Myrtle.
But the most spectacular of all is the Cassia Rainbow Showers, which can be found growing on the high side of the gardens above the toilet block.
This large tree is a cross between two other cassias, C. javanica and C. fistula. Its flowers come in many shades of pale pink through to yellow and orange, combining the colours of both its parents.
As a sterile hybrid, this tree has the advantage of not producing any seeds, making it a highly desirable garden or street tree as it avoids the mess of unsightly pods that other cassias produce.
The original hybrid cross was created in Hawaii around 1916 by David Haughs, and scientifically named Cassia x nealiae, to honour Marie C Neal, a well-known Hawaiian botanist and author of botanical reference book, In Gardens of Hawaii, published in 1928 (revised 1965).
The tree is fairly drought tolerant but is not very salt or wind tolerant, so should be grown away from the ocean and in areas of low wind.
Meanwhile, Covid restrictions mean our monthly Sunday in the Gardens event scheduled for February 6 has been postponed until the first Sunday in March, with apologies for any inconvenience.
Visit noosabotanicgardensfriends.com for more details on the gardens.
