Hi Ispom - in my area of Australia at least there are very few plants with any red leaves at all, however last year I took this photo of a tree that grows just down the road from my home. It had nothing but bright red leaves on it at the time. I don't know the name of this type of tree so there's little else I can tell you about it at present.
Currently this tree is back to it's "normal" state, ie all of it's leaves are a darkish green colour.
Very few native plants are deciduous, Ipsom. There are many exotic plants though to be found around the country which turn, as they do in their native countries, to beautiful browns, oranges and reds as winter approaches.
There is also a plant, the Poinsettia (which I believe comes from Mexico) and which is very common in Australian gardens, that produces tiny yellow flowers in our autumn and the leaves surrounding the flowers turn a very bright red. Fortunately, unlike such things as privet and agapanthus which are dreadful weeds in this country, they cause no harm.
Hang on a bit, I've got a poinsettia in my own garden. It's just starting to turn and flower at the moment . . . I'll go and take an image for you . . .
OK, there's two. It'll be a few weeks before the leaves fully colour.
John and Kearn,
thx for comments,
of course, in fall our trees colors their leaves red and yellow,
but now, in spring only very few foliate young not green leaf.
also the “red plum”:
Ipsom, I asked my wife about the tree in Steve's image (the red one). She's a horticulturist. As best she can tell from Steve's picture it's a Brachychiton acerifolius - commonly called a 'flame tree'.
The red colouring is the flowers. Many trees of this type lose all their leaves at flowering time but it depends on their local conditions. Some will be found flowering even with many leaves still active. They normally flower in late spring/early summer - much like the Jacaranda.
Yes, quite a lot of Australian eucalypt trees have reddish leaves when they are young - look beautiful.
If you want to blow your mind completely, go to Vermont in USA in the fall (Sept / Oct) There is some mineral in the soil that just turns the autumn leaves all colours vivid red, yellow, orange you name it. The whole landscape just lights up. Most of those trees are maples.
Ipsom, funnily enough, its the bird life that provide most of the colour in the tree's here
and yep, not that their all due to leaves, Jacaranda's (purple/blue) (not native, but thrives and very, very common here, almost a native by default now) Crimson bottlebrush (for red) (and banksia's, protea's ect.) and golden wattle for the yellow, provide most of the tree colour in this part of oz. and its as mentioned spring/early summer this all happens.
Yes, quite a lot of Australian eucalypt trees have reddish leaves when they are young - look beautiful.
If you want to blow your mind completely, go to Vermont in USA in the fall (Sept / Oct) There is some mineral in the soil that just turns the autumn leaves all colours vivid red, yellow, orange you name it. The whole landscape just lights up. Most of those trees are maples.
Spent a few hours in Vermont once, dropping back a U-Haul we had hired.
But I did spend the fall over the border in Quebec and would have to agree
with you. One of my fondest memories were the changing of the maple trees.
Never have I ever seen hills cover in blood red, later changing to various
shades of red to orange.
Ispom, thanks for the references. I hesitated to call the 'flame tree' the 'Illawarra flame tree' as there are local names, and indeed, small differences - as mentioned by Paul.
I am not aware as to whether or not you have visited Australia, though I suspect that you have not. If I am right then put aside your visions of a vast green land; it's not. The green colours here, though probably as many and varied as those in Europe, the U.S.of A., and the British Isles, are much more muted. You could almost call them dull.
As fringe_dweller mentioned, the birds here do add a dash of colour. The white/pink/black cockatoos and the various lorikeets and other parrots can make an afternoon pure delight. Just yesterday I took my daily 'constitutional' and passed a property with a front lawn populated by a dozen or so galahs. The nearest was only a couple of metres away from me. The whole group pretty well ignored my presence. It makes me feel good to know that I won't hurt them and they reciprocate by not running or flying away.
I shall take my camera with me this afternoon and, if they are still around, I will take a photograph for you. The galah by the way is not colourful as it is light grey with a delicate pink tinge.
*edit*
Unfortunately the galahs have move on, Ispom.
Like most parrots in this country the galah is a social animal. I've attached a couple of pictures (not mine).
Anyway, I'll shut up now as I'm drifting off the subject.
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