Wildflowers of Western Australia

The colour and diversity of Western Australia’s seven-thousand-odd wildflower species seem all the more astonishing because of the brevity of their appearance.

With the first winter rains come wattles, white heaths and sundews; the ensuing weeks transform otherwise drab foliage into a painter’s palette, whether groundcover, shrub, climber or tree.

The justly famous Leschenaultia and its incredible spectrum – pale and rich blue, brilliant scarlet, intense crimson, glowing yellow — and the curiously shaped Kangaroo paws, which contrast blood red and emerald green, gold and black, flame and purple, perhaps lead the popular favourites.

But there are hundreds of other types inside this handsome book, their beauty destined to be preserved long after the season has ended, the real-life petals faded and the seeds returned to the earth to await further regeneration with the next winter rains.