Plants in the Hortus
Many of the plants described here were listed in the catalogues of plants published by Sir William Macarthur in 1843, 1845, 1850 and 1857 and in an unpublished catalogue dated 1861. A large number of additional plants were identified from correspondence, gardening notebooks and other documents surviving in the archives. The Hortus attempts to describe all the plants grown in the gardens at Camden Park and those grown in horticultural enterprises such as orchards and vineyards and includes plants grown outside the gardens in the park-like environs of the Camden Park estate. The Hortus plants served a wide range of purposes in the 19th century household; as ornament, living fences, fibre, dyestuffs, medicines, food and drink from the garden, orchard and vineyard and many others.
Gethylus species unidentified
An unidentified species of Gethylus or related genus. Gethylus is a genus of about 32 species of deciduous, bulbous perennials from southern Africa. Summer flowering, the flowers are usually quite simple, cream or pale to deep pink, usually scented, with a long, cylindrical, slender perianth tube and 6 spreading tepals, narrowly to broadly lanceolate. The flowers are usually followed by the strap-shaped leaves which are often spiralling. [CECB].
The illustration used here is Gethyllus spiralis (Thunb.) Thunb.
Geum chiloense ‘Magnificum Splendens’
See Geum chiloense Balb. ex Ser. for a brief description of the species. ‘Magnificum Splendens’ is a form, probably of garden origin, with orange-red flowers [Hortus], or deep yellow flowers [RHSD].
Geum chiloense Balb. ex Ser.
Fully hardy, clump-forming perennial with pinnate basal leaves, deeply lobed, toothed stem leaves and branched stems bearing reddish-orange or scarlet flowers, to 4cm across, in summer. To 60cm. The well-known cultivar ‘Mrs Bradshaw’ is a form of Geum chiloense. [RHSE, Hortus].
Ginkgo biloba L.
Fully-hardy, columnar, then wide-spreading dioecious, deciduous tree with flat, fan-shaped leaves, to 12cm across, turning yellow in autumn, catkin-like male flowers, and solitary female flowers, followed by plum-like, yellow-green fruit, to 3cm long, in autumn. To 30m. [RHSE, Hortus, Hilliers’].
Gladiolus 'Rex Rubrorum'
Probably a hybrid and described under new varieties of gladiolus in the Floricultural Cabinet as ‘well expanded, dark crimson.’ [FC p.257/1851]. An advertisement for Bass and Brown, nurserymen, described it as rich dark velvet crimson, finest form, an early variety. [GC p.674/1853].
Gladiolus ‘Albert’
Camden Park hybrid. Gladiolus x colvilli x Gladiolus x gandavensis hybrid. Hybrid no.2 of a cross between Gladiolus x colvilli and G. gandavensis. ‘Flowered first time in early 1846. Large well shaped flowers, colour crimson scarlet with dark crimson blotches on the lower lobes. Robust branching scape, 3-4 feet high with numerous flowers. Not equal to “Hero” but very handsome.’ Fairly productive, by 1848 it had produced 7 large roots and 40 offsets. [MP A2948-5]. It was referred to by Emily Macarthur in a letter to William, probably November 1848: ‘The gladiolus bed is thriving – “Priam” very handsome, “Prince of Orange” and “Albert” open – the latter comes next in beauty to “Priam”.’
Gladiolus ‘Blakii’
Camden Park hybrid. Gladiolus x colvilli x (Gladiolus x colvilli x G. carneus). Bidwill described Blakii as ‘a fine dark pink with dark red spots, a very large flower – good shape’, in a letter to Edward Macarthur Bowman, 22nd November, 1844. [MP A4297 p.23].
Gladiolus ‘Brilliant’
Camden Park hybrid. (Gladiolus cardinalis x G. tristis) x Gladiolus x gandavensis hybrid. ‘No.10. Brilliant. Card. trist. Gandavensis (No.22). Robust scape large flowers 3½ - 4 in., petals too thin and rather pointed. Colour brilliant red between(?) scarlet, pink [word indistinct] with a white stripe in centre of each upper lobe, and a little purple and [word indistinct] on lower lobes. If the petals had not been so thin this would have been a very fine flower. 1848 3 large roots 10 offsets.’ ‘Brilliant’ was not listed in the catalogues.
Gladiolus ‘Diomede’
Camden Park hybrid. Gladiolus x colvilli x Gladiolus x gandavensis hybrid. Hybrid no.11 of a cross between Gladiolus x colvilli and G. gandavensis. ‘No.11. Diomede. Colvillo Gandavensis (No.14). Robust scape, large well shaped flowers, crimson rose like ‘Hero’ with purple blotches on lower lobes. Good. 1848. 2 large 12 offsets.’ [MP A2948-5].
Gladiolus ‘Gallus’
Camden Park hybrid. (Gladiolus cardinalis x G. tristis) x Gladiolus x gandavensis hybrid. Hybrid No.11 of this cross. ‘Flowered first time November and December 22nd, 1847, called now ‘Gallus’. Flower very large and well shaped, colour orange scarlet, very brilliant with large purple and brown blotches on the lower lobes. Robust scape with numerous flowers. Very handsome.’ By 1848 this seedling had produced 1 large root and 8 offshoots. Described in Macarthur’s notebook no.5 primarily in an entry dated December 23rd, 1847. [MP A2948-5].
Gladiolus ‘Harlequin’
There is no description of ‘Harlequin’ in Macarthur’s notebooks and the parents are unknown.
Gladiolus ‘Hero’
Camden Park hybrid. Gladiolus x colvilli x Gladiolus x gandavensis hybrid. Described in William Macarthur’s note books, in an entry dated December 23rd, 1847, as G. Colvilli-gandavensis no.1, that is hybrid no.1 of a cross between Gladiolus x colvilli x G. gandavensis. ‘Flowered first time early 1846. Large, handsomely shaped with [next word not clear] developed flowers, colour rich crimson scarlet with purple crimson spots on the lower lobes. Robust, branching scape, 3-4 feet high, numerous flowers. Very handsome.’ By 1848 it had produced 3 large roots and 16 offsets. [MP A2948-5].
Gladiolus ‘Imaculata’
Unidentified Gladiolus. Probably a hybrid but if so it is a very early one. We can hypothesise that ‘Imaculata’ is a misspelling of ‘Immaculata’, meaning without spots. Perhaps this indicates a fully self-coloured flower, which would have been unusual at this time.
Gladiolus ‘Isabella’
Camden Park hybrid. (Gladiolus carneus x G. colvilli) x Gladiolus x colvilli hybrid. Bidwill described it to Edward Macarthur Bowman: ‘The only other one we named is a very singular Blandus-colvilli, tall and strong its flowers will [word indistinct, probably look] almost exactly like Blandus (most of this cross are dark) except that it has a bright red spot in the lower petals. This we have called Isabella. There are a great many others but they are not sufficiently distinct to name.’ [MP A4297 p.23].
Gladiolus ‘Mary’
Raised in England by John Bidwill before coming to Australia and only listed in the catalogues in 1843. No description is extant but it was certainly a gandavensis hybrid. It was probably lost quite early and does not appear to have been used for hybridising in Australia.
