Yesterday Betty rang us from just down the road in Dingley. She told us of a giant pine cone like thing that was nearly 3 feet long. We though we’d better investigate.
Betty was one of the first people to live in Dingley some 40-50 years ago. She’s 83 now and doesn’t quite remember exactly when it was, but her and her now deceased husband, had the first dry cleaner shop in Dingley village.
The plant this giant cone had come from had been in the garden for 30 odd years. It had never had one of these before.
As it turns out, the giant cone was growing out of the middle of a cycad, probably Cycas bougainvilleana, a native of the Solomon Islands and Eastern New Guinea. Male and female organs are found on separate plants. We are not sure what this one is, but most people think it is a male! It is not a tall plant,but in the native tropics would probably be 2 metres high
On my drive home there was a spectacular crepe myrtle that caught my eye. It was a pleasant excursion from the nursery and reminded me of beautiful gardens down ordinary roads with common gardeners, just like you and I.