''Adenanthos'' × ''cunninghamii'', commonly known as woollybush, Albany woollybush or prostrate woollybush, is a hybrid shrub in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. The

Noongar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian peoples who live in the south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the so ...

peoples know the plant as boyur.

Description

It has an erect and spreading habit, growing to 1.5 m (5 ft) in height. Young branches are covered by short white hairs, but these are lost with age. The leaves are about 25 mm (1 in) 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. The single red flowers appear in September and October and again in March. It has a similar appearance to ''

Adenanthos sericeus ''Adenanthos sericeus'', commonly known as woolly bush, is a shrub native to the south coast of Western Australia. It has bright red but small and obscure flowers, and very soft, deeply divided, hairy leaves. Description ''Adenanthos sericeus ...

'', but has leaf segments that are flattened rather than cylindrical like those of ''A. sericeus''.

Taxonomy

The hybrid was originally formally described as a species ''Adenanthos cunninghamii'' by Swiss botanist

Carl Meissner Carl Daniel Friedrich Meissner (1 November 1800 – 2 May 1874) was a Swiss botanist. Biography Born in Bern, Switzerland on 1 November 1800, he was christened Meisner but later changed the spelling of his name to Meissner. For most of his 40 ...

, his description published in 1845 in the first volume of ''

Plantae Preissianae ''Plantae preissianae sive enumeratio plantarum quas in australasia occidentali et meridionali-occidentali annis 1838-1841 collegit Ludovicus Preiss'', more commonly known as ''Plantae preissianae'', is a book written by Johann Georg Christian Leh ...

''. The specific epithet honours Allan Cunningham. A genetic analysis of ''Adenanthos cunninghamii'' was undertaken in 2003. This analysis confirmed that it is a hybrid between ''

'' and '' Adenanthos cuneatus''.

Distribution

The hybrid occurs in the vicinity of

Torndirrup National Park Torndirrup National Park is a national park in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, southeast of Perth and via Frenchman Bay Road is south of Albany. Torndirrup National Park has many impressive rock formations on the coast. Thes ...

including Shire Reserve to the south west of Albany as well as

Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve is a protected area managed by the Department of Parks and Wildlife east of Albany, Western Australia. The area is accessible by 2WD vehicles. The bay itself, including two small secluded beaches, faces due eas ...

and Gull Rock, east of Albany. It is found in low woodland, shrub and heathland on deep, sandy soils.

Conservation

''Adenanthos'' × ''cunningamii'' is classified as "Priority Four - Rare" on the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation's

Declared Rare and Priority Flora List The Declared Rare and Priority Flora List is the system by which Western Australia's conservation flora are given a priority. Developed by the Government of Western Australia's Department of Environment and Conservation, it was used extensively wi ...

. As ''Adenanthos cunningamii'' it was listed as "Endangered" under the

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 The ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999'' (Cth) is an Act of the Parliament of Australia that provides a framework for protection of the Australian environment, including its biodiversity and its natural and cult ...

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 ''Phytophthora cinnamomi'' is a soil-borne water mould that produces an infection which causes a condition in plants variously called " root rot", "dieback", or (in certain ''Castanea'' species), "ink disease". The plant pathogen is one of the wo ...

'' dieback.

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.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adenanthos cunninghamii cunninghamii Eudicots of Western Australia Interspecific plant hybrids Taxa named by Carl Meissner