Banksia ashbyi subsp. boreoscaia
Ashby’s Banksia (dwarf form)
A great choice for smaller gardens or native verges.
This dwarf form of Banksia ashbyi can reach a height of 1.5 m and a width of 1.5 m, forming a dense, low rounded shrub with showy blooms held above the foliage. It flowers in winter to spring and provides nectar for native fauna. The flower spikes are especially spectacular as they are an intense orange, 15 cm in length by 10 cm diameter.
Grow it at home
- Tolerates most soils providing there is good drainage
- Plant in autumn or winter, in a position in full sun
- Apply a slow-release native plant fertiliser at time of planting and annually as required in the spring months
- Once established after its first year in the ground it is very hardy and should need no summer watering
- Responds well to careful pruning. Prune early to create a multi-branched shrub. Harvesting the flower stems for a cut flower display or removing spent flower spikes will stimulate the following season’s flowering. Alternatively you can leave the woody fruit to form an attractive feature and a potential food source for Carnaby's Black Cockatoos.
Carnaby’s Black Cockatoos (Zanda latirostris) enjoy feeding on the seeds held in the woody cones here in Kings Park.
Find it in Kings Park
See Ashby’s Banksia in the Wadjuk Car Park surrounds, Banksia garden, Northern Sandplain garden at Roe Gardens, May Drive Parkland and Poolgarla Family Area.
Out in the wild
Ashby’s Banksia grows naturally on the coastal sandplains around Carnarvon and Exmouth.
