Try growing: Pointed Boobialla (Myoporum acuminatum)

There's always something interesting in flower or fruit around Illawarra, and you don't have to go far to find them. I find I often bump into a beautiful shrub or tree when I'm focusing on something completely different. And so it was with this beautiful Pointed Boobialla (Myoporum acuminatum) which is growing in an estate down at Bellambi, right next to the surf club. 

There I was, on the way to a Landcare meeting, getting lost as usual, so the wrong turn that took me into Stathes Mews was completely random. And there by good luck was this beautiful, hardy tree, growing amid the concrete and asphalt, completely covered in beautiful white flowers speckled with purple. 

Image by Emma Rooksby.

Well, the flowers aren't that conspicuous in the bigger scheme of things. But if you get up close to them, they're absolutely gorgeous.  Here's a closeup, showing the distinctive purple markings of the flower. 

The purple markings on the flower may be a 'runway' for insect pollinators. Image by Mithra Cox, reproduced under CC BY-NC 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/).

One important characteristic of Pointed Boobialla is its tolerance of near-coastal conditions. It grows naturally in rainforest and wet sclerophyll forest in coastal areas, and can be seen in the hind dunes at Puckeys Estate or Perkins Beach in Winding, roughing it with Coastal Banksias (B. integrifolia), Coast Teatree (Leptospermum laevigatum) and other super-tough species.  

A mature Pointed Boobialla growing in a small reserve in eastern Towradgi. This is one of the largest local specimens I've seen. Image by Leon Fuller.  

If you want to learn more about growing Pointed Boobialla, you can check out the entry at Growing Illawarra Natives. 

Lucky last, a shot of the leaves of Pointed Boobialla, from a plant growing in the hind dunes at Puckeys Estate. Image by Emma Rooksby.