On this day in 1982, it was announced the royal bluebell (wahlenbergia gloriosa) was adopted as the flower emblem of the ACT.
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Before the announcement, the ACT was the only state or territory without a flower emblem.
One of the reasons in selecting the royal bluebell was that it occurs naturally in the sub-alpine forest and woodlands of the ACT.
The bluebell was described as a "striking, dark blue, bell-shaped flower" that can withstand a temperature lower than minus 5 degrees and great ground cover.
The type chosen by the ACT predominantly grew in the high country, the Brindabellas, the Kosciuszko National Park and the mountainous areas of Victoria.
The flower had many different species but the one selected as the spokeswoman confirmed, wahlenbergia gloriosa, was the largest with the deepest blue pigmentation.
The bell-shaped feature of the flower was highly adaptable for any forms of promotion and as motifs such as appearing on the blazer pockets of sporting teams.
The ACT later went on to adopt an official faunal emblem, the gang-gang cockatoo (callocephalon fimbriatum). The distinctive ash-grey cockatoo was chosen due to its prevalence in the capital.
