Native Bluebells

Wahlenbergia (stricta?)
Family: CAMPANULACEAE
Here is a lovely stand of native bluebells, which I photographed last week in “Glenvale Gardens”, a retirement village in Toowoomba. Apparently the garden won a prize in the Carnival of Flowers, and I’m not surprised at that.
The surprise was that locally native flowers were used in a local flower garden - something I’d love to see more often.
I didn’t ask, but I expect the flowers were Wahlenbergia stricta (white backs on the bells).


It is a common plant of our grasslands, often seen on our road verges around here where it takes advantage of the rainfall runoff provided by the road. It’s a perennial, which dies back in winter, to reappear in full beauty in spring.
Individual plants are rather sparse, so they are shown off at their sky-blue best if they are grouped, as these ones are. These are frost hardy, drought-hardy plants, which like to be in full sun.
I just wish they were easier to buy. If they were, I’m sure we’d see more of them on our local gardens.