''Leucadendron sericeum'', the Wabooms conebush, is a flower-bearing

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 ...

belonging to the genus '' Leucadendron'' and forms part of the

fynbos Fynbos (; meaning fine plants) is a small belt of natural shrubland or heathland vegetation located in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. This area is predominantly coastal and mountainous, with a Mediterranean clim ...

. The plant is native to the Western Cape, South Africa.

Description

The shrub grows tall and flowers from May to September. The plant dies after a fire but the seeds survive. The seeds are stored in a toll on the female plant and only fall to the ground where they are spread by ants after two months, after the fruit has ripened. The plant is unisexual and there are separate plants with male and female flowers, which are pollinated by small insects. In Afrikaans, it is known as .

Distribution and habitat

The plant occurs at the Wabooms River in the

Kouebokkeveld Mountains The Koue Bokkeveld, meaning "Cold Buck Shrubland" in Afrikaans, is a mountain range in the Western Cape Province, South Africa. Geologically the range is composed of Cedarberg Sandstone of the Cape System. Location and extent It is located above ...

. The plant grows mainly in sandstone soil at altitudes of .

References

* * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q18078056 sericeum Taxa named by Carl Peter Thunberg Plants described in 1810