''Banksia hookeriana'', commonly known as Hooker's banksia, is a species of shrub of the genus ''
Banksia
''Banksia'' is a genus of around 170 species in the plant family Proteaceae. These Australian wildflowers and popular garden plants are easily recognised by their characteristic flower spikes, and fruiting "cones" and heads. ''Banksias'' range i ...
'' in the family
Proteaceae
The Proteaceae form a family of flowering plants predominantly distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises 83 genera with about 1,660 known species. Together with the Platanaceae and Nelumbonaceae, they make up the order Pro ...
. It is native to the
southwest
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
of Western Australia and can reach up to high and wide. This species has long narrow serrated leaves and large, bright flower spikes, initially white before opening to a bright orange that appear over the cooler months. The flowers are pollinated by
honeyeater
The honeyeaters are a large and diverse family (biology), family, Meliphagidae, of small to medium-sized birds. The family includes the Epthianura, Australian chats, myzomelas, friarbirds, wattlebirds, Manorina, miners and melidectes. They are ...
s. The ageing flower spikes develop woody seed pods known as follicles. ''B. hookeriana'' is
serotinous
Serotiny in botany simply means 'following' or 'later'.
In the case of serotinous flowers, it means flowers which grow following the growth of leaves, or even more simply, flowering later in the season than is customary with allied species. Havi ...
— large numbers of seeds are stored in the plant canopy for years until the plants are burnt by bushfire.
Description
''Banksia hookeriana'' grows as an bushy
shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
to around in diameter, and high. pp. 118–19. It has smooth bark. New growth appears in spring and summer. Anywhere up to several hairy -long
branchlet
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''B. hookeriana'' has been shown to be highly susceptible to
dieback
Dieback may refer to a number of plant problems and diseases including:
* Forest dieback caused by acid rain, heavy metal pollution, or imported pathogens
* The death of regions of a plant or similar organism caused by physical damage, such as from ...
from the soil-borne
water mould
Oomycota forms a distinct phylogenetic lineage of fungus-like eukaryotic microorganisms, called oomycetes (). They are filamentous and heterotrophic, and can reproduce both sexually and asexually. Sexual reproduction of an oospore is the resul ...
''
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 ...
'', unlike many Western Australian banksias.
The flowers are visited and pollinated by honeyeaters such as the
white-cheeked honeyeater
The white-cheeked honeyeater (''Phylidonyris niger'') inhabits the east coast and the south-west corner of Australia. It has a large white patch on its cheek, brown eyes, and a yellow panel on its wing.
Taxonomy
The white-cheeked honeyeater was ...
(''Phylidonyris nigra'') and
brown honeyeater
The brown honeyeater (''Lichmera indistincta'') is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It belongs to the honeyeaters, a group of birds which have highly developed brush-tipped tongues adapted for nectar feeding. Honeyeaters are found ...
(''Lichmera indistincta'').
Cultivation
''Banksia hookeriana'' is highly regarded in the cut flower industry, and has markets both in and outside Australia. Cut flowers have a vase life of ten days.
A fast-growing plant in cultivation, ''B. hookeriana'' flowers 3–4 years from seed. It requires good drainage. It can be grown in Mediterranean climates such as Victoria and South Australia, but does not tolerate climates with summer humidity.
Seeds do not require any treatment, and take 23 to 49 days to
germinate
Germination is the process by which an organism grows from a seed or spore. The term is applied to the sprouting of a seedling from a seed of an angiosperm or gymnosperm, the growth of a sporeling from a spore, such as the spores of fungi, fer ...