British Museum Australian walkabout – a slice of Oz in WC1 -

Running until the 16th Oct 2011 is the ‘Australian Landscape’ outside the British Museum in central London.

Created in partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, the landscape ‘showcases the rich biodiversity of Australia, and how these fragile systems are under threat from land usage and climate change.’

If you’re not up for all that eco-stuff, then it’s still a pleasant little stroll, with some curious plants scattered about for your attention.

Seen on the the coastal plains and adjacent forests of south-west Western Australia, the Balga tree (Xanthorrhoea preissii) is cunningly resistant to fire – and when it does get a bit of a roasting, the fire can stimulate prolific flowering, with blackened trunks re-sprouting within a few months of a fire passing.

It’s a tasty thing too, with the stalk covered in tiny flowers which produce a sweet nectar which can be made up to a delicious drink.