Crassula ciliata L.

Small herbaceous plant with rounded, grayish, succulent leaves and flower spike bearing a terminal raceme of tiny yellowish flowers.  [Plantarum historia succulentarum].

Added on February 07 2009

Malus domestica ‘Hampshire Nonsuch’

‘This is a pretty large, well-shaped apple, of a greenish-yellow color, streaked with red, it keeps till the latter end of November.’ [Hogg p.239/1851].

Added on April 15 2010

Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. var. carneaplena

See Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. for a description of the species and Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. var. Banksii and Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. var. papaveracea for more specific information relating to the description below. 

Added on January 29 2010

Rhododendron nudiflorum ‘Incarnata Maxima’

Treated here as a cultivar of Rhododendron nudiflorum Torr. but may be naturally occurring. Sweet describes the flowers of Azalea nudiflora incarnata as flesh coloured. [HB p.265/1826 quoted in Wilson and Rehder p.199].  

Added on June 18 2009

Helichrysum humile Less.

Shrub with slender, often unbranched shoots and terminal flower heads with pale pink to deep rose-coloured, papery bracts.  To 60cm.  [RHSD].

Added on September 09 2009

Gladiolus (cardinalis x tristis) x (x gandavensis) [#20]

Three way hybrid, (Gladiolus cardinalis x G. tristis) x Gladiolus x gandavensis no.20, described in Macarthur’s notebook no.4 in 1847.  ‘Moderate scape, flowers small.  middling shape, colour purplish crimson with yellow on part of lower lobes.  Indifferent variety flowers too small.’  [MP A2948-4].

Added on October 22 2009

Lagerstroemia speciosa (L.) Pers.

Half hardy, spreading, freely branching, evergreen tree with peeling, light brown bark, elliptic leaves, to 20cm long, and open panicles, to 40cm long, of pink, mauve, purple or white flowers, to 5cm wide, from spring to autumn.  To 24m.  [RHSE, Hortus].

Added on March 05 2010

Improvements to Hortus Camdenensis

The Hortus software has been upgraded. This led to some minor errors in the layout of plant names, particularly in the headings of Plant Profile pages but these have now been largely overcome. Improvements are also progressively being made to the content of the Hortus in three main areas, botanical and horticultural history, cross referencing and illustrations. Some enhancements will be done as the opportunity arises but most will be completed family by family. This will take at least two years to complete.

Published Sep 14, 2010 - 04:06 PM | Last updated Aug 12, 2012 - 04:36 PM

Sir William Macarthur on Vines and Vineyards

Sir William Macarthur wrote extensively on vines and Vineyards. It is our intention to publish all his writings in the Hortus.

Published Aug 01, 2010 - 04:58 PM | Last updated Oct 04, 2010 - 04:47 PM

Working Bee dates

Working Bee dates for 2012.

Published Jun 29, 2010 - 02:59 PM | Last updated Jan 10, 2012 - 05:19 PM

Open House and Gardens

Camden Park House and Gardens will be open to the public on Saturday 22nd September, 2012, from 12.00 noon until 4.00 pm, and Sunday 23rd from 10.00 am until 4.00 pm.

Published Dec 30, 2009 - 02:58 PM | Last updated Jan 09, 2012 - 05:31 PM

The Family Amaryllidaceae at Camden Park

Amaryllidaceae was a very significant family of plants in the history of the Camden Park gardens.  The following Essay provides a little background to these important plants.

Published Jan 01, 2010 - 05:11 PM | Last updated Jul 30, 2010 - 02:54 PM

A Few Words on Gesneraceous Plants

The family Gesnereaceae was an important contributor to the diversity of the colonial garden of Camden Park, with 97 plants described in the Hortus, mainly from the genera Achimenes and Sinningia. This short article provides a good overview of the history of Gesneriads as garden plants, and some very useful advice on their culture. Unfortunately I have lost the source reference, but the content suggests that it was written for an Australian colonial readership. The article is simply signed L.W.

Published Jun 26, 2010 - 03:01 PM | Last updated Jun 26, 2010 - 03:19 PM

Rambles in New Zealand - Part 1

Rambles in New Zealand is the only published work of John Carne Bidwill of any length and an important document in the early colonial history of that country.
It is included in the Hortus for a number of reasons but mainly because, together with his letters to The Gardeners’ Chronicle, it completes the known published works of Bidwill. His importance in the history of the Camden Park gardens and the lack of any substantive treatment of his life and achievements make it appropriate to include all his published work here.

Rambles is published here in four parts:
Part 1 – dedication, Preface, pages 1-29
Part 2 – pages 30-59
Part 3 – pages 60-89
Part 4 – pages 90 -93, List of Subscribers

Published Feb 29, 2012 - 08:45 AM | Last updated Feb 29, 2012 - 03:08 PM

Colonial Australian Wines

The following article appeared in The Gardeners’ Chronicle of Saturday, November 25th, 1854. It includes a review of seven wines sent to the proprietors of The Gardeners’ Chronicle from Camden Park by William Macarthur, together with his notes on the wines, the vineyards in which they were produced and the economic conditions pertaining to wine production and sale in Australia. Macarthur’s brief notes, when read with the more detailed essay Some Account of the Vineyards at Camden, extends our knowledge of wine production at Camden but most importantly provides an external (but not necessarily unbiased) view of the quality of the wines.

Published Jun 30, 2011 - 02:12 PM | Last updated Jul 04, 2011 - 09:00 AM