A Curious and Divese Flora provides an overview of the Australian flora and is presented by Dr Peter Valder of the University of Sydney.
In Part 1, we are introduced to some of Australia's main plant families in the Botany Bay area. With its thin, poor soils, the Sydney region has more plant species than the whole of Great Britain.
Part 2 looks at the isolated but related flora of south-west Australia. Because it has been effectively isolated from the rest of Australia for a long time, this area has an unusually high proportion of endemic species.
Part 3 looks at the dryness and hard-leafed nature of Australia's vegetation. It looks at the way our native vegetation has adapted to dry conditions, low levels of nutrients and fire.
Part 4 is based on the theme change and survival. Australia's vegetation has undergone major changes, even in comparatively recent times, as our tropical rainforests and central desert testify.
Part 5 looks at distant botanical connections. The relationships which Australia's flora has with the other southern continents are most evident in Tasmania and, on the mainland alps, there are some plants which have more in common with those of the northern hemisphere, than the rest of Australia.
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