Newsletter 8th April 2025

First published 8th April 2025

Hello everyone, I think I am settling into these newsletters being bimonthly, and shall keep to the format of the previous one as much as possible.

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Item 1: Things of Beauty
The Wollongong Botanic Garden Rose Garden is both the Thing of Beauty Item as well as the Wollongong Botanic Garden feature for this newsletter.

It truly is a beautiful collection of every rose type, so knowing that their peak flowering time was coming to an end this month April 2025, I set out last month March 2025 to photograph as many as I could:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

Item 2: A Garlic Monobulb
Last newsletter’s Item 2 was the unusual Narrandera tree, so in keeping with the theme of unusual encounters, please find A Garlic Monobulb for this one!

Item 3: Other New Blog Posts Since Last Newsletter
Plant of the Month: March 2025
Vriesea philippocoburgii, a bromeliad known for its brown ‘fingernails’ and a 2 m tall flower spike!

Microbial Lithotrophs, the Rock Eaters
this is a reprint from my other blog, but was a natural follow-up to the succulent potting mix post back in January, and so was added to this blog.

The xkcd Stromatolites Comic
Another reprint, but can’t resist sharing photosynthesising bacteria with a different audience!

How to Stop Very Loose and Open Mixes Falling through an Air-Pot Base
Thanks Kel, for your head-slapping so-obvious-in-hindsight solution!

Suggested Mixes For Air-Pot Bonsai Training Pots
Anything goes, really, so long as you stick to the five basic rules.

Plant of the Month: April 2025
Egyptian Walking Onions / Tree Onions (Allium × proliferum)

Updated Air-Pot Container Diagrams and Videos Page
Now includes videos of how to pack the larger containers well.

Item 4: Newly-Listed Items
Pigeon Pea (Cajanus cajan) Seeds

Young Pigeon Pea Tree (Cajanus cajan) in 130 mm Pot

Red-stemmed Malabar/Climbing Spinach (Basella alba 'Rubra') in 160 mm Pot

Advanced Peruvian Groundcherry/Cape Gooseberry (Physalis peruviana) in 190 mm Pot

Egyptian Walking Onions / Tree Onions (Allium × proliferum) in 40 mm Tube

Egyptian Walking Onions / Tree Onions (Allium × proliferum) in 90 mm Bottomless Pot

Egyptian Walking Onions / Tree Onions (Allium × proliferum) - Mature Plants in 190 mm Pot