Banksia gardneri

Prostrate Banksia
B. gardneri,
unusual black styles
near Albany, WA
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Genus: Banksia
Subgenus: Banksia subg. Banksia
Section: Banksia sect. Banksia
Series: Banksia ser. Prostratae
Species: B. gardneri
Binomial name
Banksia gardneri
A.S.George

The Prostrate Banksia (Banksia gardneri) is a species of prostrate shrub in the plant genus Banksia. It occurs along the south coast of Western Australia.

Scientific name

It was initially named Banksia prostrata, but Alex George discovered that name was illegal because it was already a valid synonym of Pimelia prostrata. He broke his rule about never naming plants after people and named it after Charles Gardner in honour of his work on banksias.[1]

Description

It is a slow growing prostrate woody shrub with thick horizontal stems and upright broadly roughly triangularly lobed leaves to 40 cm high (though usually less) and 2 to 6 cm wide. The furry rusty brown flower spikes are cylindrical with cream, or rarely black styles. Flowering is in late spring. It is lignotuberorous and regenerates by resprouting after fire.

Distribution and habitat

It grows in sand or gravel between Denmark and Hopetoun.

Taxonomy

Three subspecies are recognised:

Cultivation

B. g. gardneri is a slow growing shrub though fairly easy to grow. It is less vigorous than Banksia blechnifolia or B. petiolaris. Seeds do not require any treatment, and take 19 to 64 days to germinate.[2]

References

  1. George, Alex (1986). "Banksias (Talk given at 1985 AGM):Part II". Native Plants for NSW (Australian Plants Society, NSW Region) 21 (5): 11–14.
  2. Sweedman, Luke; Merritt, David (2006). Australian seeds: a guide to their collection, identification and biology. CSIRO Publishing. p. 203. ISBN 0-643-09298-6.

External links

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