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The Sunday Times
14th December 2008
Our Own Bright Star
Trevor Cochrane
It is one of the most sought-after flowering plants in the world, but the WA Christmas tree is also one of the hardest to grow
The WA Christmas tree, Nuytsia floribunda, is one of the most prized of all West Australian flowering plants and until now has been one of the most difficult to grow.
From November to January, these trees light up the landscape with a stunning golden yellow/orange flower display that's much love by West Australian and admired by visitors to the state during this time of year.
From seed, this unique parasitic tree can take anywhere from seven to 14 years to flower, which makes it impractical for normal commercial growers to grow.
The seeds do germinate readily, but require a host to continue developing and it's this fact that has made them almost impossible to buy in pots because it's hard enough to grow one plant, let alone a host species as well.
In saying that, you will find them occasionally here and there and sometimes growing your own from seed is a viable option, using couch grass as a host and growing across the top of the pot.
Being a parasite that draws almost all of its nutrients and moisture from its hosts, the Christmas tree has a unique survival strategy.
It attaches itself to many hosts so its individual effect is minimal. This strategy keeps all of its hosts healthy and the tree's nutrient and moisture source secure.
If you want a WA Christmas tree but don't have the patience to wait for it to grow, you could consider transplanting mature trees from the bush into your garden.
That said, anyone who has tried this will tell you it's impossible.
The sad thing is that more many years tens of thousands of these gorgeous native trees have been destroyed as land is cleared for urban expansion or farming.
It's a pity the trees have not been able to be transplanted as they could become a very good export industry, allowing collectors from across Australia and around the world to see these marvels at their very best.
During the Garden Gurus' travels to botanical gardens in countries such as Korea and Northern Ireland, we've met curators and botanical garden superintendents who have expressed a strong desire to have a WA Christmas tree in their collection.
While they have been able to get Australian trees such as grasstrees, boabs and bottlebrush, the WA Christmas tree has been the unattainable holy grail.
Grasstrees Australia is the company behind the successful transplanting of WA's famous Xanthorrhoea preissii, once commonly knows as the blackboy, and has been saving them from destruction in land clearing.
In addition, Grasstrees Australia has also been working on ways to transplant Nuytsia.
Their Nuytsia transplant project was led by company owner Tom Gordon, a Canadian who fell in love with the Australian landscape and our native flora's incredible beauty.
In 2006 we were privileged to secure one of his first successful WA Christmas tree transplants for a garden we designed for Kings Park's Botanic Garden and this year we were delighted to get another into a commercial garden we designed for the Water Corporation.
The WA Christmas trees planted at Kings Park and the Water Corporation have both quickly established themselves without significant treatments to settle them in, suggesting they have found a suitable host.
Hopefully, more WA Christmas trees will make it into home gardens across Australia and even those of the world's plant collectors, who admire the beauty of this unusual tree.
