For those of us with European heritage, Christmas is often associated with Northern Hemisphere images of snow, pine trees and holly. More recently, Christmas imagery shows Santa on a bright yellow beach, in a sleigh pulled by kangaroos.
But what are the unique natural images for New England at Christmas time? Well, firstly there is unlikely to be snow. Unlikely, but not impossible, as last year saw snow fall on the Snowy Mountains and it went very close on the Northern Tablelands.
Normally, the average maximum temperature in Armidale ranges from 22-26oC in December, which is also one of the wettest months. These conditions produce a flourish of growth and flowering throughout New England.
One of the most noticeable colours of Christmas in New England is blue. New England Peppermints (Eucalyptus nova-anglica) puts on lots of new growth at this time of year. Its pale blue, waxy leaves are very obvious in the bush now. If you are driving to the coast, look for large stands of this New England local at Oaky and Sandy Creeks. Another common blue native plant is the bluebell (Wahlenbergia spp). This little flower grows everywhere from bushland to footpaths in town.
Another prominent colour is yellow, as many of our local wildflowers bloom. The yellow paper daisies are prominent in woodlands with their stiff, bright yellow blooms. Scientists from the NCW Beadle Herbarium at UNE have recently discovered that what we know as one species (Xerochrysum bracteata), may actually be six different species. Other yellow daisies include the small everlasting (Leucochrysum albicans) and the copper-wire daisy (Podolepis jaceoides).
Complementing the blue and yellows, is the purple from many wildflowers. Native violets and Sarsparilla (Hardenbergia violacea) have showy purple flowers. If you look carefully in any area of native grass, you will also see the smaller purple flowers of the twining glycine peas. These peas twine around the stems of grasses. Being legumes, they also fix nitrogen from the air and make it available to pasture grasses.
So this Christmas, instead of thinking of the reds and greens of the Northern Hemisphere, have a blue, yellow and purple Christmas. Celebrate the diversity of New England.
