Adenanthos sericeus x cunninghammii

Location & distribution maps

Phylogeny & links to associated information

Wikipedia links:       Angiosperms > Eudicots > Proteales > Proteaceae > Adenanthos  sericeus x cunninghammii

Other links:     

Plant information 

Common name:         Prostrate Woollybush

• Woollybush, Albany woollybush or prostrate woollybush, is a hybrid shrub in the family Proteaceae

• The Noongar peoples know the plant as boyur

Conservation status: Rare

• It is classified as "Priority Four - Rare" on the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation's Declared Rare and Priority Flora List

• It was listed as "Endangered" under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 until its removal from the list in 2006

• As a hybrid, it did not qualify as a species under section 528 of the Act

• It is moderately susceptible to Phytophthora cinnamomi dieback

Etymology:   

• Genus is from Greek aden, a gland and anthos, a flower, referring to the prominent nectaries in the flower

• The specific epithet honours Allan Cunningham

Flowers

• The single red flowers appear in September and October and again in March

• It has a similar appearance to Adenanthos sericeus, but has leaf segments that are flattened rather than cylindrical like those of A. sericeus

Fruit:                            

Leaves:         

• The leaves are about 25 mm long, and deeply divided into three narrow segments, each of which is typically further divided into two laciniae

• Thus most leaves have 6 laciniae, though sometimes there are 8, and very rarely fewer than six

• Each lacinia is about 3 mm wide, somewhat concave, with a linear margin

Stem & branches: 

• Young branches are covered by short white hairs, but these are lost with age

Roots:         

Habit:        

• It has an erect and spreading habit, growing to 1.5 m in height

Habitat:   

• It is found in low woodland, shrub and heathland on deep, sandy soils

Distribution:                  

• It is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia

• The hybrid occurs in the vicinity of Torndirrup National Park including Shire Reserve to the south west of Albany as well as Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve and Gull Rock, east of Albany

Additional notes:     

• Cultivation

  • Albany woollybush is grown for its silvery foliage, rather than its relatively insignificant flowers, though the latter produce copious nectar that attracts honeyeaters

  • Although it is from a dry summer climate, it adapts to humid summer conditions

  • It prefers a position in full sun or part shade and freely draining light soil

  • Plants can be propagated relatively easily from cuttings of semi-mature current season's growth

• Taxonomy

  • The hybrid was originally formally described as a species Adenanthos cunninghamii by Swiss botanist Carl Meissner

  • His description was published in 1845 in the first volume of Plantae Preissianae

  •  A genetic analysis of Adenanthos cunninghamii was undertaken in 2003

  • This analysis confirmed that it is a hybrid between Adenanthos sericeus and Adenanthos cuneatus

Sources of information:

•  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adenanthos_%C3%97_cunninghamii ( July 2024)