June 2010

Grevillea wickhamii

Common Name: Wickham’s Grevillea

Family: PROTEACEAE (80 Genera)

Origin of Scientific Name

Grevillea: after Charles Francis Greville (1749 – 1809), one of the founders of the Horticultural Society, now the Royal Horticultural Society.

wickhamii: after John Clements Wickham (1798 – 1864), 1st Lieutenant on HMS Beagle 1831 – 36 (Darwin’s expedition). He made the type collection during one of his surveys of the north-west coast of Western Australia.

Description

Erect, robust shrub or small tree 2 to 6 m high with blue-grey, silky, pungent-toothed leaves often described as “holly-like”, 3 to 9 cm long and 2 to 5.5 cm wide. Pendulous flowers are pink, yellow, orange or most commonly, bright red.

There are six subspecies of Grevillea wickhamii: 
ssp. aprica, ssp. crastita, ssp. hispidula, ssp. macrodonta, ssp. pallida and ssp. wickhamii.

Distribution

The Northern Territory, Queensland and the northern half of Western Australia.

Flowering Season

April to October

Cultivation/Propagation

Can be grown from seed, best nicked and treated with smoke or smoke water. Does

best in tropical and subtropical climates, though it does flower in Perth and as far south as Sydney. Requires full sun, excellent drainage and good air circulation.

View This Plant in Kings Park

Usually, you would be able to view these grevilleas in full flower in the Botanic Garden entry beds and the Grevillea bed in Roe Gardens but this year, newly planted specimens are still only small and although budding, are yet to flower. To help locate these sites, you may download the Western Australian Botanic Garden Guide brochure via our brochures page.

Notes

A good plant for attracting nectar-feeding birds to your garden.