NOTICE: Hard copies of the Australian New Crops Newsletter are available from the publisher, Dr Rob Fletcher. Details of availability are included in the
Advice on Publications Available.The following notes have been extracted, with the authors' permission from a series of Agnotes, most of which were developed by Ian Knox, of the Oz Rural Web site (http://www.ozrural.com), for the database of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, which can also be accessed through the NRE Web site (http://www.nre.vic.gov.au).
Product
Rice flower (Ozothamnus diosmifolius) is a spring flowering perennial native shrub, the flowers of which up until the 1980s were harvested from the wild for local and export markets; commercial plantations have now been established. Rice flower can range from white to dark pink in colour. It is used as a filler in wildflower or conventional flower arrangements; it can have a long vase life (10 days) in the right conditions.
The product is sold according to quality which entails long straight stems and pink flowers. Production requirements are described in the Agriculture Note available through http://www.ozrural.com or http://www.nre.vic.gov.au.
Marketing
Most rice flower is exported, particularly to Japan, with some to the USA and elsewhere. Exporters are important components in the value chain but there can be several other components, each of which can have specific requirements. Price, quality, trends, packaging and ease of handling can all be important. Industry standards have been accepted by the Flower Export Council of Australia (FECA) and Standards Australia.
For further information, contact:
Institute for Horticultural Development
Department of Natural Resources and Environment
Private Mail Bag 15
South Eastern Mail Centre
Knoxfield, Victoria 3180
Telephone: 03 9210 9222
Facsimile: 03 9800 3521
Redlands Research Station
Queensland Department of Primary Industry
PO Box 327
Cleveland Queensland 4163
Telephone: 07 3286 1488
Farm Diversification Information Service
Department of Natural Resources and Environment
Bendigo, Victoria 3550
Telephone: 1800 150 515 or 03 5430 4444
References
Hyde, KW (Ed)
New Rural Industries - A Handbook for Farmers and Investors
Available from the Rural Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC)
Kingston, ACT 2600
Telephone: 02 6272 4539
Facsimile: 02 6272 5877
Email: rirdc@netinfo.com.au
Web site: http://www.rirdc.gov.au
Price: AUD40+8 (postage); AUD40+14 (postage overseas)
The chapter on riceflower by Peter Beal, Cynthia Carson, Lois Turnbull and Leif Forsberg is available from:
http://www.rirdc.gov.au/pub/handbook/riceflower.html
The Australian Wildflower Industry
Karingal Consultants, 1994
Available from the Rural Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC)
Any claims made by authors in the Australian New Crops Newsletter are presented by the Editors in good faith. Readers would be wise to critically examine the circumstances associated with any claims to determine the applicability of such claims to their specific set of circumstances. This material can be reproduced, with the provision that the source and the author (or editors, if applicable) are acknowledged and the use is for information or educational purposes. Contact with the original author is probably wise since the material may require updating or amendment if used in other publications. Material sourced from the Australian New Crops Newsletter cannot be used out of context or for commercial purposes not related to its original purpose in the newsletter
Contact: Dr Rob Fletcher, School of Land and Food, The University of Queensland Gatton College, 4345; Telephone: 07 5460 1311 or 07 5460 1301; Facsimile: 07 5460 1112; International facsimile: 61 7 5460 1112; Email:
r.fletcher@mailbox.uq.edu.au[
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GK; latest update 17 October 2001 by: RF