Wikipedia:Main Page history/2015 July 20

Telopea oreades, commonly known as the Gippsland waratah, is a large shrub or small tree in the family Proteaceae. Native to southeastern Australia, it is found in wet sclerophyll forest and rainforest on rich acidic soils high in organic matter. No subspecies are recognised, though an isolated population hybridises extensively with the Braidwood waratah (T. mongaensis). Reaching a height of up to 19 metres (65 ft), T. oreades grows with a single trunk and erect habit. It has dark green leaves with prominent veins that are 11–28 centimetres (4.3–11 in) long and 1.5–6 cm (0.6–2.4 in) wide. The red flower heads, or inflorescences, composed of up to 60 individual flowers, appear in late spring. In the garden, T. oreades grows in soils with good drainage and ample moisture in partly shaded or sunny positions. Several commercially available cultivars that are hybrid forms with T. speciosissima have been developed. The timber is hard and has been used for making furniture and tool handles. (Full article...)

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• Ongoing events:

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July 20: Friend's Day in Argentina and other Latin American countries; Independence Day in Colombia (1810); Marine Day in Japan (2015)

• 1592 – During the first Japanese invasion of Korea, Japanese forces led by Toyotomi Hideyoshi captured Pyongyang, although they were ultimately unable to hold it.
• 1807 – French brothers Claude and Nicéphore Niépce received a patent for their Pyréolophore, one of the world's first internal combustion engines.
• 1940 – The Arroyo Seco Parkway (pictured), one of the first freeways built in the United States, opened to traffic, connecting downtown Los Angeles with Pasadena, California.
• 1982 – Members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army detonated two bombs in Hyde Park and Regent's Park in London, killing eleven people and wounding over 50 others.
• 2005 – The Civil Marriage Act received its Royal Assent, legalizing same-sex marriage in Canada.

• More anniversaries:

  • July 19
  • July 20
  • July 21

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