A hidden jewel in Coffs

Coffs Botanic Garden

Inside the glasshouse the fern room
is a showcase, the plants in tip-top condition
croziers sprout fractal rhythms of apple green;
the next room is stitched with orchids,
overblown cymbidiums and a rash
of modest bush blooms soft-barked log
on the threshold of the succulents
a scent appears, a smell with the taste
of rotting carpet. We scour the roof,
tracking the beams, looking for the python.