Selected plants in the Hortus
Malus baccata (L.) Borkh var. sibirica C.K.Schneid
A small to medium sized tree of rounded habit, the leaves oval to lance-shaped, the flowers white, fragrant, borne in clusters. The fruit of the Siberian Crab is round, clustered, with yellow skin heavily streaked with red. To 15m or more. [RHSD, Hortus, Hilliers’]. See also See also Malus baccata (L.) Borkh. This is almost certainly the same plant.
Added on April 15 2010
Riedlea tiliifolia DC.
Frost tender shrub or small tree with toothed leaves and terminal corymbs of numerous small pink flowers. To 60cm. [Don].
Added on March 07 2010
Ixia paniculata D.Delaroche
Half-hardy cormous perennial with erect lance-shaped leaves and branched stems bearing spikes of 5-18 pink-suffused, cream or pale yellow flowers in spring and summer. To 90cm. [RHSE, CECB].
Added on November 14 2009
Camellia japonica ‘Clara’
A cultivar of Camellia japonica L. Camden Park bred, seedling 23/50. ‘Said to be like Coccinea and good.’ William Macarthur. [MP A2948-6].
Added on June 21 2009
Camellia japonica ‘Helena’
A cultivar of Camellia japonica L. Camden Park bred, seedling 28/50. ‘Deepish pale crimson, smallish size, very regular, quite double. Petals and flower quite perfect. Good. Beautiful variety.’ William Macarthur. [MP A2948-6].
Added on June 22 2009
Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. var. humei
Paeonia suffruticosa var. humei has partially double, whitish flowers with a dark centre. [Hortus]. ‘The flowers of this variety are double, and have a bunch of petals arising from the middle of the flower of a reddish colour. It is a pretty variety.’ [Clericus in FC p.45/1842]. See Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. for more information.
Added on January 29 2010
Passiflora hybrid no.2
‘No.2. Much darker than Kermisina, a lot of purple carmine, lance shaped broader petals and better centre.’
Added on January 31 2010
News
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
Essays
Australian native plants in the Hortus
Australian native plants were important to the gardening enterprises of Camden Park. Even today Australian trees such as Araucaria species, Agathis robusta, Brachychiton populneum, Lagunaria pattersonia, Grevillea robusta and several species of palm very much define the landscape of the gardens. Australian plants, particularly native orchids and ferns, were sent to England in large numbers in exchange for the exotic plants that were so much desired by Macarthur and his fellow colonists.
Published Mar 13, 2010 - 05:22 PM | Last updated Jul 30, 2010 - 02:32 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
Florists’ flowers
Floristry, in the 17th, 18th and 19th century meaning of the word, the growing and improvement of flowering plants for the sake of their beauty alone, has a long history in China and Asia but is of relatively recent origin in Europe. From quite humble beginnings, the small scale leisure activity of artisans and labourers, it attracted the attention of the owners of the great pleasure gardens and botanic gardens of Europe. Specialised nurseries began to appear to service great and small gardens, providing a means of disseminating the beautiful new varieties which the nurseries were both breeding and obtaining from enthusiastic amateurs.
Published Mar 12, 2010 - 03:41 PM | Last updated Jun 27, 2010 - 05:30 PM
Rambles in New Zealand - part 3
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 - 02:11 PM | Last updated Mar 01, 2012 - 07:02 AM
About the Hortus
The Hortus attempts to correctly identify, describe, illustrate and provide a brief history of all the plants grown at Camden Park between c.1820 and 1861.
Plants in the Hortus
The Hortus plants served a wide range of purposes: ornament, living fences, fibre, dyestuffs, medicine, food from the garden and orchard, and many others.
Plant Families
Plants in the Hortus are grouped by Family, perhaps the most useful of the higher order classifications.
Essays
Essays enhance the Hortus by providing a level of detail about the gardens, people, and plants that would be inappropriate for an individual plant profile.
Hortus News
News provides an opportunity for people interested in the gardens to keep in touch with the work being done to maintain and reinvigorate the gardens and receive advance notice of events such as Open Garden days.
