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Having been in Canberra for a few days it is interesting to see the summer-flowering trees there in full bloom. Particularly noticeable were the "Silky Oaks" (Grevillea robusta). Click on the underlined "links" for images of the whole plant and of the flower. Being Aussie trees, they are not real oaks. These fine trees are native to the rainforests of northern NSW and Queensland. They cover themselves with large trusses of orange flowers. The flowers are rich in nectar, and so are popular with honeyeaters. This plant is a true Grevillea, but very different from the small shrubs with which we are more familiar.
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Another tree which is very obvious along the highway at present is the white flowered Melaleuca linariifolia which is known as "Snow in Summer". This is a local plant in damp areas in the sandstone country around Robertson. The name means "Flax-leaved Melaleuca", from the Egyptian Flax plant, Linum. It is not spelled "lineariifolia" as Les Robinson's: "Field Guide to the Native Plants of Sydney" shows it (it is still an indispensable reference text).
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