Oval-leaf hakea facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Oval-leaf hakea |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Hakea elliptica in the ANBG | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Hakea
|
| Species: |
elliptica
|
 |
|
| Occurrence data from AVH | |
Hakea elliptica, also known as the oval-leaf hakea, is a special kind of shrub or small tree. It belongs to the Proteaceae plant family. This plant is only found in Western Australia, which means it is endemic there. The oval-leaf hakea grows quite fast and can adapt to different places. It has pretty, wavy leaves and its new leaves are a lovely golden-bronze color. When it flowers, it produces lots of showy white blooms. Because it grows densely, it makes a great home for local wildlife.
Contents
What Does the Oval-leaf Hakea Look Like?
The oval-leaf hakea is a thick, rounded shrub or small tree. It usually grows to be about 2 to 4 meters (6.5 to 13 feet) tall. Its smaller branches are covered with thick, reddish-brown hairs, especially when it's about to flower.
Leaves and New Growth
The leaves are dark green and grow one after another along the stem. They are shaped like an oval, sometimes a wide oval, and end in a sharp point. These leaves are flat and measure about 4.5 to 9.5 centimeters (1.8 to 3.7 inches) long. They are also about 1.5 to 5.5 centimeters (0.6 to 2.2 inches) wide. You can easily see the veins on the leaves, and the edges are wavy. When new leaves grow, they have a beautiful bronze-brown color.
Flowers and Fruit
The oval-leaf hakea produces many cream-white flowers. These flowers grow in groups of 35 to 40 in the leaf corners. They have a strong, pleasant smell. Each flower sits on a smooth stalk about 8 millimeters (0.3 inches) long. The flower itself is cream-white and about 4 millimeters (0.16 inches) long. The style, which is part of the flower, is long and thin, measuring about 6 to 7.5 millimeters (0.24 to 0.3 inches). This plant usually flowers from November to February.
After flowering, the plant grows egg-shaped fruits. These fruits are about 3 to 3.7 centimeters (1.2 to 1.5 inches) long and 1.8 to 2.2 centimeters (0.7 to 0.9 inches) wide. They have a short, upturned beak at the end. The surface of the fruit is smooth but not perfectly even. Inside, the seeds are blackish-brown and oval-shaped.
How Did It Get Its Name?
The oval-leaf hakea has a bit of a history with its name! It was first described in 1807 by a person named James Edward Smith. He called it Conchium ellipticum. The next year, he changed the name slightly to Conchium elliptica.
Later, in 1810, a famous botanist named Robert Brown decided to move this plant into a different group, or genus, called Hakea. That's how it got its current scientific name, Hakea elliptica. The "elliptica" part of its name comes from the word "elliptic," which describes the oval shape of its leaves.
Where Does It Grow?
You can find the oval-leaf hakea along the southern coast of Western Australia. It grows in an area known as the Great Southern region. Specifically, it's found between the towns of Denmark and just east of Albany.
This plant prefers to grow in sandy soils that are found over granite rock. It often lives in coastal heath communities, which are areas with low-growing shrubs and plants near the coast.
