M is for mmmm .. let's see what we can find

Melaleuca calothamnoides (trying saying that with a mouthful) belongs to the Myrtaceae family and grows in heath and woodland in the Kalbarri area of Western Australia.

It has no generally accepted common name but the species name of 'calothamnoides' means it is similar to the genus Calothamnus.  It is a small to medium shrub from 0.8 to 3 metres high (9 ft) and has linear leaves, and flowers which occur in bottlebrush-like clusters and are usually red/orange with a greenish centre. These clusters are usually borne on short branches off the main stem.

This plant has been in cultivation for many years but is not widely grown.  It is one of the hardier Western Australian species in humid areas of the east coast of Australia where Western Australian species can be difficult to establish.  It has proven to be hardy in well drained soils in a sunny position.  Plants are tolerant of least moderate frosts and respond to pruning to maintain a bush shape. Propagation is easy from both seeds and cuttings.  (I'm certainly not going to travel nearly 700km just for a couple of cuttings which you probably aren't allowed to collect anyway).

Macropidia fuliginosa, commonly known as the Black Kangaroo Paw, is a striking black and lime-green flowered plant which is distinctly different from the more commonly grown Anigozanthos kangaroo paws.  It grows in heath and mallee communities in eastern Western Australia:

 Black and green flowers are extremely rare in Australian plants, so Macropidia makes a most attractive addition to native gardens.  Growing it, however, is likely  to be a challenge in the eastern states of Australia as it cannot be regarded as hardy in humid climates.  It can however, be grown for a few years in a container in a sunny position.

Macropidia is part of the family Haemodoraceae which it shares with Anigozanthos.  The two genera are believed to have evolved in the southwest of Western Australian from a common Gondwanan ancestor.  M. fuliginosa is the only species in the Macropidia genus.  It is sufficiently different to the Anigozanthos species that atempts at hybridisation have so far  been uncessful.

This is a very spectacular species.  The individual plants consist of blue-green stap-like leaves 20 to 50cms in height and flowers occur in spring and summer on branched stems to a metre or more high and are greenish-yellow with black, soot-like hairs.  Black hairs also occur along the stems.

I truly think the black and green kangaroo is quite outstanding although many prefer the red and green one.