The Terrestrial Plants of Rickett's Point Urban Sanctuary Melbourne
Field Guide Australian Botany Urban Ecology Native Plant Identification Coastal Gardening Local Flora Reference Educational Resource
The Terrestrial Plants of Rickett’s Point Urban Sanctuary Melbourne is the only field guide devoted to the 250-plus native and naturalised plants found between the cliff-top walking track and the reef platform at Ricketts Point, Beaumaris. First published in 2018 by MESAC, this tightly written 1st edition distils decades of local surveys into a spiral-bound, water-resistant handbook that fits neatly into a day-pack or glove-box. Every species is illustrated with a colour photograph, a concise diagnostic sketch, and a plain-English description that separates look-alikes such as the two coastal Correas or the three salt-tolerant Senecios. A simple thumb-tab key groups plants by growth form and flower colour, so even first-time visitors can move from “mystery daisy” to positive ID in under a minute.
What makes the book special is its laser focus on a single, accessible sanctuary only 20 km south-east of Melbourne’s CBD. Maps show exactly which carpark or bus stop gives the shortest walk to each community—whether you want the cliff-top orchids in September, the rare salt-lawrencia in January, or the autumn-flowering bush-pea that attracts blue-banded bees. Notes on Aboriginal uses, weed potential and propagation tips turn every outing into a mini-masterclass in urban ecology. Because the coastline is edged by suburbia, the guide is also a template for restoring nature strips, school grounds and coastal gardens with locally indigenous stock, helping gardeners eliminate the invasive succulents and kikuyu that escape into the marine park.
Collectors value the 2018 first edition because it was printed in small numbers for Friends of Rickett’s Point and sold almost entirely through the Beaumaris bookshop and weekend plant stalls. Copies seldom appear online, especially in the clean, unmarked condition offered here: pages are crisp, the laminated cover is still glossy, and the spiral spine allows the book to lie flat on a rock while you check a flower against the photo. Whether you are a teacher planning a VCE biology excursion, a naturalist surveying Victoria’s 127 coastal reserves, or a home gardener committed to local provenance, this is the authoritative—and increasingly hard-to-find—reference for one of Melbourne’s best-kept botanical secrets.
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