Wildflower Walk opens at Fitzroy Falls
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Wildflower Walk opens at Fitzroy Falls |
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A lyrebird emits a chorus of amusing bird and mechanical imitations as visitors walk through deep forest on the east rim of the cliffs at Fitzroy Falls. The bird sound is a bonus for flower spotters on this crisp spring day. Exploding golden puffs of sunshine wattle waft a gentle scent on the breeze and the red tufts of honey flowers gleam in the undergrowth. Parties of tourists stop to read the signs that give them more information about these indigenous beauties.
The new signs along the East Rim Wildflower Walk plus an accompanying booklet have been funded by the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife with money from the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation. The signs and booklet are dedicated to the memory of the late botanist Janet Cosh, who collected and illustrated some 5000 species of indigenous plant from the Sydney sandstone region. The prodigious botanist bequeathed a considerable proportion of her estate to the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife, which used it to fund the Janet Cosh Memorial Room at the Visitors Centre at Fitzroy Falls. The memorial room holds some 900 plant specimens from the Morton area and drawings from Janet’s important herbarium. For the past three years the Foundation had also been supporting the Visitor Centre.
Opening the East Rim Wildflower Walk on August 14th, Peter Janssen, a director of the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife said the support of the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation has "once more created a great way for everyone to enjoy the outdoors and study our native ecosystems at the same time." He said: "Over the past eighteen years the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation has supported five walks like this one here through the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife." "Sir Vincent Fairfax was a founding Trustee of the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife. He was present when The Hon Tom Lewis established the organisation in 1970 and lent his support as a Trustee until 1973." The new signs and the booklet help visitors spot the difference between the various types of tree fern in the tranquil fern gully, identify the sassafras tree which is scattering white blooms over the path and find out about the native holly. They show the aromatic lemon-scented tea trees and Sydney peppermint as well as the sheoaks and other trees that are important food sources for birds. Some of the signs give surprising information. Who could imagine that the feathery pouched tree fern was used by aboriginal people to make hats for toddlers and babies? The walk ends in the Warrawong lookout that gives a view back to the waterfall set between red cliffs. If you get there in the next few weeks you can enjoy the flowers at their brightest.
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