Hooker's banksia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hooker's banksia |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Banksia
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| Species: |
hookeriana
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| Synonyms | |
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Sirmuellera hookeriana (Meisn.) Kuntze |
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The Banksia hookeriana, also known as Hooker's banksia, is a type of large shrub. It belongs to the Banksia genus, which is part of the Proteaceae plant family. This plant grows naturally in the southwest part of Western Australia. It can grow quite tall, up to about 4 meters (13 feet) high and 3 meters (10 feet) wide.
Hooker's banksia has long, narrow leaves with jagged edges. Its flowers are very bright and colorful. They start off white and then open up to a bright orange. These flowers appear during the cooler months of the year. Birds called honeyeaters help to pollinate the flowers. After the flowers get older, they turn into woody seed pods, which are called follicles. This plant is special because it is serotinous. This means it keeps many seeds stored in its branches for years. These seeds are only released and grow into new plants after a bushfire burns the old plant.
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What is Hooker's Banksia?
Hooker's banksia grows as a bushy shrub. It can reach about 3 meters (10 feet) wide and 3 to 4 meters (10 to 13 feet) tall. It has smooth bark. New parts of the plant grow in spring and summer.
Its leaves are found along the branches, but they are closer together near the tips. The leaves are usually 6 to 16 centimeters (2.4 to 6.3 inches) long and 0.5 to 1.2 centimeters (0.2 to 0.5 inches) wide. They are slightly curved. The edges of the leaves have 20 to 45 small, triangular points on each side.
The flower spikes, also called inflorescences, grow at the ends of the branches. They appear from late April to October, with most blooming in July and August. These flower spikes are about 9 to 10 centimeters (3.5 to 3.9 inches) wide and 7 to 12 centimeters (2.8 to 4.7 inches) tall. Each spike can have around 1000 tiny individual flowers. After the flowers age, they stay on the spikes. These spikes then develop up to 20 woody seed pods each.
How Hooker's Banksia Got Its Name
The Banksia hookeriana was first described in 1855 by a Swiss botanist named Carl Meissner. The plant material he studied was collected by James Drummond. The second part of its scientific name, hookeriana, was chosen to honor Sir Joseph D. Hooker, a famous botanist.
In 1891, a German botanist named Otto Kuntze suggested that the name Banksia should not be used. He thought a different name, Sirmuellera, should be used instead. So, he renamed B. hookeriana as Sirmuellera hookeriana. However, his idea was not accepted, and the name Banksia was officially kept in 1940.
Later, in 1981, another botanist named Alex George placed B. hookeriana into a group called Crocinae. This group included four species that are closely related and all have bright orange flowers.
Where Hooker's Banksia Lives
Hooker's banksia grows in sandy areas between Arrowsmith and Eneabba in Western Australia. It is found on flat or gently sloping land. It prefers deep white or yellow sand. Often, it is the main plant species growing in these areas. It commonly grows alongside other plants like Banksia attenuata, B. elegans, and Eucalyptus todtiana.
Life Cycle and Fire
Like many plants in Australia's southwest, Hooker's banksia is used to living in places where bushfires happen often. Most Banksia plants react to fire in one of two ways:
- Reseeders: These plants are killed by fire, but the fire helps release their seeds. This allows new plants to grow.
- Resprouters: These plants survive fires by growing new shoots from protected parts, like underground stems or thick bark.
Hooker's banksia is a reseeder. It dies in a bushfire, but new plants grow from its seeds. It is also serotinous, meaning it holds its seeds in woody pods on the old flower spikes. These seeds are stored in the plant's branches.
It takes about 5 years for these plants to start making seeds. They keep collecting more seeds over many years. For the best chance of new plants growing after a fire, fires should happen every 15 to 18 years. If fires happen too often, less than every 11 years, fewer new plants will grow, and the species could eventually disappear. Changes in climate and more frequent fires have affected how well this plant can reproduce.
Hooker's banksia plants can live for up to 40 years. However, they are usually killed by fire long before that. Plants growing along roadsides tend to be taller and have more old flower spikes. This means they store more than four times as many seeds. This happens because they get extra water and nutrients from the road runoff.
Plant Diseases
B. hookeriana is very sensitive to a plant disease called wikt:dieback. This disease is caused by a tiny water mold called Phytophthora cinnamomi that lives in the soil. Many other banksias in Western Australia are not as affected by this disease.
Pollination
The flowers of Hooker's banksia are visited and pollinated by honeyeater birds. Examples include the white-cheeked honeyeater (Phylidonyris nigra) and the brown honeyeater (Lichmera indistincta). These birds help the plant reproduce by carrying pollen from one flower to another.
Growing Hooker's Banksia
Hooker's banksia is very popular in the cut flower industry. Its flowers are sold both in Australia and other countries. Cut flowers can last for about ten days in a vase.
When grown by people, B. hookeriana grows quickly. It can start flowering 3 to 4 years after being planted from a seed. It needs soil that drains water well. It can be grown in places with a Mediterranean climate, like Victoria and South Australia. However, it does not do well in places with high humidity in the summer.
The seeds do not need any special treatment to grow. They usually take between 23 and 49 days to sprout.
Images for kids
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A hybrid, B. prionotes × hookeriana, growing on a roadside near Walkaway. The large size, consistent with B. prionotes, together with the narrow leaves of B. hookeriana, are diagnostic.
