IT'S A given that if a garden in Australia looks good in February, it's likely it will look good all year.
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This hit me on a recent visit to the Australian National Botanic Gardens (ANBG) in Canberra.
We were there in mid-February and like much of NSW, the ACT had been sizzling under a daily maximum of 35 degrees Celsius for several days, yet the gardens looked beautiful, they were cool and inviting and the plants were amazing - not a wilting leaf in sight.
Full marks to everyone involved, especially the gardeners, for getting planning, planting and maintenance so right.
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The ANBG are located on the eastern slopes of Black Mountain, near Lake Burley Griffin, at an altitude of just under 600 metres.
Downside of the 35-hectare site is the fairly infertile soil, which includes rocky outcrops and heavy, poorly drained clays.
Upsides are the shelter from the local Black Mountain brittle gums (Eucalyptus mannifera), inland scribbly gums (E. rossii) and red stringybarks (E. macrorhynca), and water (non-drinking) from the lake.
Canberra is Australia's coldest capital city, with frosty winters, warm, dry summers, and an average rainfall of approximately 600 millimetres a year.
It's not exactly an ideal spot for a botanic garden devoted exclusively to Australian native plants: 70 per cent of our continent is arid or semi-arid and a further 10pc of our flora comes from tropical rainforests.
However the gardens weren't always intended to be exclusively for native plants. Walter Burley Griffin's 1913 plan for the national capital included a 'continental' arboretum featuring trees from around the globe, but little happened for decades while, ironically, the city streets and surrounds were planted with millions of exotics.
As a result of a 1930s study it was agreed to develop a site on Black Mountain partly to the scientific study of native flora. Work began officially in September 1945 with the planting of an oak that died and a brittle gum that flourishes to this day.
Maybe this was seen as an omen: by the early 1960s the policy of specialising in native plants was fully established. Then, as now, 95pc were originally gathered in the wild.
Prime Minister John Gorton opened the gardens in 1970 and their name finally became Australian Native Botanic Gardens in 1984.
Visiting a large botanic garden can be a bit daunting but the ANBG's volunteer Friends of the Gardens make it easy for visitors with a brilliant leaflet, Flowers, Fruit and Foliage, updated weekly (see website below) which includes a map and highlights what is currently in season.
Plants blooming during our visit included drought and frost tolerant, bright red kangaroo paw (Anigozanthos) Bush Ranger; dark red quandong berries (Santalum), pale yellow hibiscus (H. divaricatus), white flowering Baeckia diosmifolia and masses of bright mauve cut leaf daisy (Brachyscome).
Walter Burley Griffin loved Australian flora and would, I am sure, be delighted to see, 110 years later, the eventual result of his planned 'continental arboretum'.
ANBG are open 8.30am to 5pm daily except Christmas Day. Visit www.anbg.gov.au/gardens For details of the Australian Plants Society visit www.austplants.com.au
