Nuytsia floribunda, The Australian Christmas Tree

Identification

This tree, pictured below, produces bright yellow flowers around December. It may grow up to 33 meters tall.

Life Cycle

This tree is considered one of the largest parasitic plants because the root system of one individual tree parasitizes many other plants that grow within 150 meters of the tree. It may grow up to 10 meters in height and creates gold flowers in the summer. It blooms yearly, and produces seeds that are wind-distributed.

Host Information

N. floribunda has a wide variety of host species, from grasses to other trees like crepe myrtles. However, propagation attempts have largely failed except in specific conditions in its native region.

Distribution

This hemiparasitic plant is native to Southwest Australia and extremely specialized for that climate.

http://anpsa.org.au/n-flo.html