Where the desert blooms

Swathesof everlasting flowers cover the ground at certain times of the year in parts of Western Australia.

The flowers that bloom in the spring are to be found in their millions in Western Australia. Or are they?

The much-vaunted swathes of everlasting daisies, grevilleas, banksias and the like are certainly there, but not always as readily seen as expected. Sometimes a closer look at what lies just off the beaten tracks is required.

The rather boring scenery that flashes past at 100km/h hides a multitude of little gems.

A walk among the scrub and gum trees that line the roads reveals tiny yellow donkey orchids sheltering beneath bushes, cat's paws that resemble little kangaroo paw flowers, pinky-mauve olearia, and tiny blue fan flowers whose shape is perfectly defined by the name.

White fluffy heads of pimelia floribunda cluster together with feather flowers of yellow and brown and kangaroo paws of red and green or, rarely, black and green. Dampiera in shades of blue grow alongside wreath plants, whose flowers appear in delicate pink and white circlets 30cm across.

Roads are lined with acacias, their flowers appearing like little bits of yellow cottonwool stuck to the stalks. And if you are lucky, you may come across great areas of smoke bush and its close relative, the finer-flowered summer smoke bush, reflecting and resembling clouds.

But the vistas of purple seen in the distance are described as the plague of WA, the hated Paterson's curse. Imported by a South Australian run-holder, and known in that state as Salvation Jane for its ability to grow and feed stock when nothing else would, its habit of spreading and rapid seeding chokes out native plants.

Geraldton wax, a bush that appears in the wild all over the state, is often grown as a screen along city streets and motorways, and is popular in home gardens for its survival rate and appeal as a cut flower.

The wildflower season is dictated by geography, rain and sunshine. In general, the flowering begins in the north of the state in an area known as the Pilbara, in about July. As late as November, flowers of different species and colours will be decorating the southern part of the state.

The everlastings are more commonly found in the north, with Kalbarri National Park a good kicking-off point. In the south, orchids are more common, as well as the carnivorous pitcher plants, yellow mistletoe-topped Australian Christmas tree and the scented brown boronia.

Not every year brings a huge display of wildflowers. Seeds can lie in the ground for up to 30 years, with the flowering triggered by rain. Still others will only bloom after a fire, when smoke rather than heat is essential for germination.

If time is short, visitors to Perth need only go as far as King's Park in the heart of the city. Here the Western Australian Botanic Garden occupies 17ha of the 400ha park, known locally as the Soul of the City.

The annual Wildflower Festival is held at the end of September, and showcases about 3000 different species of annuals and perennials. This is about one-eighth of the plant species native to Australia, of which about half are found only in WA.

The park also contains a water garden, an elevated walkway through native trees, and an area dedicated to ancient cycads which predate dinosaurs.

So when spring is sprung and the grass is riz, we know now where the flowers is.

Western Australia

Getting there

Air New Zealand flies direct to Perth daily.

Wildflowers

There's plenty about wildflowers on the Western Australia Tourism website (see link below) or you could try the Wildflower Society of Western Australia.

* Phoebe Falconer travelled as guest of Western Australian Tourism.