This is a list of Australian

floral emblem In a number of countries, plants have been chosen as symbols to represent specific geographic areas. Some countries have a country-wide floral emblem; others in addition have symbols representing subdivisions. Different processes have been used to ...

s. It encompasses the national flower and the official flowers of the constituent states.

History

After the

Federation of Australia The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia (which also governed what is now the Northern Territory), and Western A ...

that took place in 1901, the upsurge in nationalism led to the search for an official national floral emblem.

Archibald Campbell Archibald Campbell may refer to: Peerage * Archibald Campbell of Lochawe (died before 1394), Scottish peer * Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll (died 1513), Lord Chancellor of Scotland * Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll (c. 1507–1558) ...

had founded the Wattle Club in Victoria in 1899 to promote interest in and profile of the wattle as a unique Australian flower. The New South Wales waratah was considered alongside the wattle ''

Acacia pycnantha ''Acacia pycnantha'', most commonly known as the golden wattle, is a tree of the family Fabaceae native to southeastern Australia. It grows to a height of and has phyllodes (flattened leaf stalks) instead of true leaves. Sickle-shaped, these ...

'', although lost out to the latter in 1912. The economist and botanist R. T. Baker proposed that the waratah's endemism to the Australian continent made it a better choice than the wattle, as well as the prominence of its flowers. The South Australian ''Evening News'' also supported the bid, but to no avail. In New South Wales, the New South Wales waratah was proclaimed as the official floral emblem of the state in 1962 by the then governor Sir

Eric Woodward Lieutenant general (Australia), Lieutenant General Sir Eric Winslow Woodward (21 July 1899 – 29 December 1967) was an Australian military officer and viceroy. Following long service in the Australian Army, including terms as Deputy Chief of Ar ...

, after being used informally for many years.Nixon, p. 86. The Cooktown Orchid (''

Vappodes phalaenopsis ''Dendrobium bigibbum'', commonly known as the Cooktown orchid or mauve butterfly orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It has cylindrical pseudobulbs, each with between three and five green or purplish leaves a ...

''), was the official floral emblem of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

since 19 November 1959. Not an authorised copy. In November 1960, ''Anigozanthos manglesii'' was adopted as the floral

emblem An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often use ...

of Western Australia in a proclamation made by then Premier of Western Australia

David Brand Sir David Brand KCMG (1 August 1912 – 15 April 1979) was an Australian politician. A member of the Liberal Party, he was a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1945 to 1975, and also the 19th and longest-serving Prem ...

, to promote tourist interest in the State's wildflowers. He had been advised by the State's Tourist Development Authority. The South Australian Policy adopted Sturt's Desert Pea ('' Swainsona formosa'') as the Floral Emblem of South Australia on 23 November 1961. The Tasmanian Government proclaimed ''

Eucalyptus globulus ''Eucalyptus globulus'', commonly known as southern blue gum or blue gum, is a species of tall, evergreen tree endemic to southeastern Australia. This ''Eucalyptus'' species has mostly smooth bark, juvenile leaves that are whitish and waxy on ...

'' as their State floral emblem on 5 December 1962, however it is rarely seen as an official or popular emblem. This led to the Tasmanian Branch of the then SGAP promoting the attractive flower ''

Eucryphia lucida ''Eucryphia lucida'', the leatherwood, is a species of tree or large shrub endemic to forests of western Tasmania, Australia. An attractive plant used in both horticulture and apiculture, it was promoted by the Tasmanian Branch of the then SGA ...

'' as an alternative in 1966. The Golden Wattle (''

'') was officially proclaimed the Floral Emblem of Australia on 1 September 1988. Australia's state flowers have been featured on series of postage stamps twice—a set of six stamps in July 1968, each showing the flowers of one state, and a series of seven stamps, showing the six state flowers and the golden wattle, in March 2014.Auspost
/ref> The Sturt's Desert Pea and Golden Wattle were also featured on a series of coil definitives in 1970.

List

References

{{AustralianFloralEmblems Floral emblems Australian floral emblems Australian Floral

History

List

See also

References