Plants

RNP Flora

The vegetation of Royal National Park has been well researched and it has as its most outstanding botanical asset a wide range of plant associations, including several types of rainforest, freshwater swamps and estuarine wetlands. There is also a wide range of ecotonal and boundary transitions which create a richness of floristic variation not found within such a small area in other Sydney parks. Along with the West Australian sandplains and South African fynbos (heathland), the park is amongst the most floristically diverse areas of its size in the temperate parts of the world. Well over 1000 plant species have been recorded, including 26 species which are listed as nationally rare or threatened. (Text source: – RNP Plan of Management, February 2000, page 4)

There are a number of Field Guides that are available for purchase that contain information on the plants that are found in the Park.

Native Plants of the Sydney Region, from Newcastle to Nowra and west to the Dividing Range : Alan Fairley and Philip Moore, 614 pages.

Field Guide to the Native Plants of Sydney: Les Robinson, 448 pages.

Rainforest Trees and Shrubs, A field guide to their identification: Gwen Harden, Bill McDonald, John Williams, 270 pages.

Rainforest Mobile App: This app is based on the USB, Rainforest Plants of Australia and includes all the 1 140 species, fact sheets and general introductory sections that are in the USB. The interactive key is illustrated and easy to use: Gwen Harden, Hugh Nicholson, Bill McDonald, Nan Nicholson, Terry Tame and John Williams. https://rainforests.net.au/

Rainforest Climbing Plants, A field guide to their identification: Gwen Harden, Bill McDonald, John Williams, 176 pages. https://rainforests.net.au/

Field Guide to the Royal National Park, Linnean Society of NSW, 170 pages. This book is now out of print but a few copies are still available through our shop: Field Guide to the Royal National Park

Coastal Plants of the Royal National Park, an interactive identification guide: The Australian Plants Society, Sutherland Group, Formerly available as a CD, the guide is currently being converted to an “app”, possible release in late 2020, watch this space for updates.

Native Orchids of Southern Sydney, Margaret Bradhurst, 68 pages. This book is available through our shop: Native Orchids of Southern Sydney

In 2020 Friends of the Royal have arranged some guided walks with plants as a focus, places are limited so be sure to register early. The location for these guided walks will be posted on this website at least 2 weeks prior to the event. Go to the Guided Walks page to register.