Where to find wildflowers in South Australia

Wild­flow­ers are now bloom­ing across the state, in nation­al parks, reserves, and by roadsides.

The out­back and the Flinders Ranges have a well-deserved rep­u­ta­tion for the most stun­ning dis­plays. But if you live in met­ro­pol­i­tan Ade­laide and don’t have time to make a long trip, you can still find plen­ty of these lit­tle gems in the Ade­laide Hills – espe­cial­ly tiny but beau­ti­ful native orchids.

Some species are already in flower, while oth­ers will be at their best in com­ing weeks.

Here are some to look out for in South Aus­trali­a’s nation­al parks:

Flinders and Outback

Spring is a spec­tac­u­lar time in Vulkathun­ha-Gam­mon Ranges and Ikara-Flinders Ranges nation­al parks, with wat­tles, native hop­bush, mint bush and Sturt desert peas enhanc­ing the amaz­ing landscape.

At Witji­ra Nation­al Park, poached-egg daisies and parakylia are spread across the dunes. Look along creek lines for pur­ple ver­bines and Dar­ling lilies, and on the gib­ber plains for daisies, lantern bush­es and Swain­son peas.

In Innam­inc­ka Region­al Reserve, native gera­ni­ums, ere­mophi­la and daisies are start­ing to flower, espe­cial­ly along the creek lines.

Mount Remark­able Nation­al Park in the South­ern Flinders is only a few hours from Ade­laide, and spots like Alli­ga­tor Gorge will be full of wild­flow­ers as spring pro­gress­es. Some to look out for are the choco­late lily, with its vio­let flow­ers and dis­tinc­tive choco­late scent, ear­ly Nan­cy and native leek, and orchids such as the scent­ed sun orchid, pink fin­gers, spi­der orchid and dad­dy longlegs.

Ade­laide Hills

Belair Nation­al Park, Cle­land, Mori­al­ta and Black Hill con­ser­va­tion parks, and Sturt Gorge and Shep­herds Hill recre­ation parks are all teem­ing with wildflowers.

The Cle­land Link Trail from Crafers to Mount Lofty Sum­mit is close to the city and ide­al to vis­it, espe­cial­ly for those with­out cars. A bus from the city takes less than half an hour and you can walk up to Mount Lofty Sum­mit or into Cle­land Wildlife Park, enjoy­ing wild­flow­ers such as twig­gy beard­ed heath, shrub vio­let and orchids like green­hoods, sun orchids and don­key orchids along the way. Look for the trail­head signs on the north­ern side of the free­way off-ramp, near the bus interchange.

Mori­al­ta has a beau­ti­ful show of native orchids, includ­ing green­hood, mos­qui­to and hel­met orchids, and sun orchidswill start flow­er­ing soon. They are vis­i­ble from the Three Falls Hike walk­ing trail, which takes you past the park’s three water­falls.

Clare Val­ley

Spring Gul­ly Con­ser­va­tion Park near Clare is also full of colour, with a gor­geous array of orchids, includ­ing spot­ted don­key orchids, shell orchids and blue fairies, and many oth­er wild­flow­ers such as bil­ly but­tons, with their yel­low puff­ball flow­ers, wood­land creamy can­dles, red par­rot-peas and ear­ly Nancy.

Want to grow native flow­er­ing plants in your home gar­den? TheState Flo­ranurs­eries at Belair Nation­al Park and Mur­ray Bridge can help with a wide range of native plants, includ­ing trees, shrubs, ground cov­ers and bulbs.

This sto­ry was orig­i­nal­ly pub­lished in Sep­tem­ber 2016.