Hakea victoria
Royal Hakea
Royal Hakea
Wikipedia links: Angiosperms > Eudicots > Proteales > Proteaceae > Hakea victoria
Other links:
Common name: Royal Hakea
Also, lantern hakea
The Noongar name for the plant is Tallyongut
Conservation status: ...
Etymology:
The genus is named after Baron Christian Ludwig von Hake, an 18th-century German patron of botany
The specific epithet is named in honour of Queen Victoria by the naturalist John Gilbert
Flowers:
The inflorescence is a cluster of 26-42 small cream-white, red or pink flowers in leaf axils that are almost obscured by the leaf shape
The smooth pedicel is 6–11 mm long, pistil 33–37 mm long and the perianth cream coloured
Flowering occurs from June to October
Fruit:
The woody fruits are about 25 mm long and between 15 and 20 mm wide
Leaves:
The leaves are arranged alternately, with distinct veins on the upper and under side, 4–11.5 cm long and 4–13 mm wide
The leaves are rough and leathery, the margin wavy with prickly teeth and ending with a sharp point
The lower leaves are green and narrow, the upper leaves are broad, concave, more or less circular, yellow at the base and shading to green at the apex
Stem & branches:
Has few branches
Roots:
It does not form a lignotuber
Habit:
An erect slender growth habit growing to 1–3 m high and 1 m wide
Habitat:
Distribution:
Endemic to Western Australia
It grows in quartzitic or lateritic sand mostly in rocky locations in the coastal region between Albany and Esperance, including the Fitzgerald River National Park
Additional notes:
It is noted for its ornamental foliage
Taxonomy
The type specimen of Hakea victoria was collected near West Mount Barren (located in what is now Fitzgerald River National Park) by botanist James Drummond
It was first described by him in 1847 in The Inquirer newspaper
Cultivation
The species requires a well-drained, sunny situation and will tolerate moderate frost
Plants are not suited to humid conditions; even if they survive, foliage colour will be poor
Propagation is easy by seed, but quite difficult from cutting
Sources of information:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakea_victoria (May 2024)