Yass Landcare Group members and friends met on the Mundoonen Range on Saturday 28th November for a walk in the Nature Reserve.
Park ranger, Susannah Power, led the walk, starting at the entrance to the Park on the Hume Highway.
The weather forecast had promised a heatwave, so we kept the walk quite short. But under the shade of the trees, a breeze kept us surprisingly cool.
Even as we gathered in the car park we could see numerous bright purple flowers scattered through the understorey - fringe lilies!
The wet spring has brought on plenty of other wildflowers too: the rich blue of finger flowers, dianella, and tiny unknown orchids. We were a little too late in the season for donkey orchids, but we hit the jackpot with red-anthered wallaby grass. Apparently the anthers are only visible for a day or two every year - and we were there!
Another highlight of the walk was the trigger plant we found. The junior landcarers were entranced by the tiny pink flowers, delicately poised to bend over and daub their pollen on to the back of any visiting insect - or little boy’s finger!
It was a treat to observe the bush in this special season, especially with the help of our knowledgeable ranger.
(By Kate Wilson, Yass Landcare Group)
