Green is not usually a colour that we associate with flowers but there are a number of native plants with green flowers.
Green flowers are usually rich in nectar and are attractive to honeyeaters. Some species have blooms that hide in the foliage. Even these hidden flowers are found by native birds.
The plants described are all surviving and thriving in local gardens.
Callistemon pinifolius is known as the pine-leaved bottlebrush and, as the name implies, the leaves are dark green and narrow with a sharp point. The pine-leaved bottlebrush will reach a height of two metres with a similar spread. Flower spikes are a bright lime-green and about eight centimetres long. Blooms appear in late spring.
Correa baeuerlenii, the chef’s cap correa, is a dense, rounded, small shrub. Leaves have a slightly sweet perfume when crushed.
Plants carry flowers from March to August. Blooms are pendulous, greenish yellow, about three centimetres long with an expanded base. This gives the flowers the appearance of a chef’s cap, hence the common name. Blooms are prominent and abundant.
The chef’s cap correa is a rare plant that is found on the south coast and ranges of NSW. This species has adapted to life in local gardens and has proved to be hardy and free-flowering.
Grevillea arenaria is a medium to tall shrub that reaches a height between three to four metres. The leaves are light green, soft and have a velvety feel. The foliage could be used as filler in cut flower arrangements.
The flowers are green with yellow and pink tinges. Some blooms are present throughout the year. This is a species that hides the flowers in the foliage. The hidden blooms are rich in nectar so even if we find them hard to see, honeyeaters have no problem in tracking them down.
Grevillea arenaria is found in the Southern Highlands and would be a useful addition to bird-friendly gardens. Grevillea jephcottii, the Pine Mountain grevillea, is rare species from northern Victoria. This is a handsome shrub that will reach a height of three metres.
