Banksia menziesii
Firewood banksia | |
---|---|
Tree habit, Jandakot Botanical Gardens | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Proteales |
Family: | Proteaceae |
Genus: | Banksia |
Subgenus: | Banksia subg. Banksia |
Species: | B. menziesii
|
Binomial name | |
Banksia menziesii | |
Synonyms | |
Sirmuellera menziesii (R.Br.) Kuntze |
Banksia menziesii, commonly known as firewood banksia, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Banksia. It is a gnarled tree up to 10 m (33 ft) tall, or a lower spreading 1–3 m (3.3–9.8 ft) shrub in the more northern parts of its range. The serrated leaves are dull green with new growth a paler grey green. The prominent autumn and winter inflorescences are often two-coloured red or pink and yellow, and their colour has given rise to more unusual common names such as port wine banksia and strawberry banksia. Yellow blooms are rarely seen.
First described by the botanist
Description
Banksia menziesii grows either as a gnarled tree to 10 m (33 ft), or a lower spreading 1–3 metres (3.3–9.8 ft) shrub, generally encountered at its northern limits in the vicinity of
Flowering occurs in autumn and winter, peaking from May to July. Overall the
Old flowers usually fall off the spikes quickly, with up to 25 large beaked follicles developing. A mottled dark brown and grey in colour, these can be prominent and quite attractively patterned when newly developed. Oval shaped, they are 2.5–3.5 cm (0.98–1.38 in) long by 1–1.5 cm (0.39–0.59 in) high and 1–1.5 cm (0.39–0.59 in) wide.[3] Overall, only a small fraction of flowers develop into follicles; the proportion is as low as one in a thousand.[10] The plant is dependent on fire to reproduce as the follicles only open after being burnt, each one producing one or two viable wedge-shaped (cuneate) seeds, on either side of a woody separator.[3] The colour and level of pigmentation in the seeds foreshadows the eventual colour of the inflorescences. Kevin Collins of the Banksia Farm recalled that for many years pale seeds were discarded by seed collectors who thought they were infertile. Later, he learnt that pale seeds yielded yellow-coloured blooms, dark grey the usual red-coloured, and black a distinctive bronze-coloured bloom.[11]
Seedlings have
Taxonomy & naming
The common name of firewood banksia was a result of its quick-burning properties.[13] Other names recorded include Menzies banksia,[14] firewheel banksia, port wine banksia, flame banksia, and in the cut flower industry, strawberry banksia and raspberry frost banksia.[15] The Beeloo Whadjuk Noongar people of the Perth region knew it as the Mungyt.[16] Despite its variation across its range, George noted that B. menziesii was a clearly defined species, and no formal division into subspecies was warranted.[3]
Its
History
Specimens of B. menziesii were first collected by the botanist
Under
In 1891,
Current placement
Alex George published a new taxonomic arrangement of Banksia in his classic 1981 monograph The genus Banksia L.f. (Proteaceae).[20] Endlicher's Eubanksia became B. subg. Banksia, and was divided into three sections. B. menziesii was placed in B. sect. Banksia, and this was further divided into nine series, with B. menziesii placed in B. ser. Banksia. He thought its closest relatives to be Banksia speciosa and B. baxteri, and that it also formed a link with eastern species, particularly Banksia serrata. Since Brown's original publication had treated all of Fraser's specimens as
In 1996, Kevin Thiele and Pauline Ladiges published a new arrangement for the genus, after cladistic analyses yielded a cladogram significantly different from George's arrangement. Thiele and Ladiges' arrangement retained B. menziesii in series Banksia, placing it in B. subser. Cratistylis along with nine other species.[26] This arrangement stood until 1999, when George effectively reverted to his 1981 arrangement in his monograph for the Flora of Australia series.[27]
Under George's taxonomic arrangement of Banksia, B. menziesii's taxonomic placement may be summarised as follows:
- Genus Banksia
- Subgenus Banksia
- Section Banksia
- Series Banksia
- B. serrata
- B. aemula
- B. ornata
- B. baxteri
- B. speciosa
- B. menziesii
- B. candolleana
- B. sceptrum
- Series Banksia
- Section Banksia
- Subgenus Banksia
B. menziesii's inflorescences resemble those of no other banksia; its closest relatives were felt by George to be B. speciosa (showy banksia) and B. baxteri (bird's nest banksia), which differs from B. menziesii in having yellow flowers and leaves with deep triangular lobes.[27] In 2002, a molecular study by Austin Mast showed its closest relatives to be the members of the series Crocinae.[28]
In 2005, Mast, Eric Jones and Shawn Havery published the results of their cladistic analyses of
As B. menziesii is not similar to any other Banksia, hybrids are unlikely to occur. The only reported hybrid is a sterile hybrid with B. hookeriana (Hooker's banksia), found north of Badgingarra by Greg Keighery.[31] Manual cross-fertilisation with B. attenuata has resulted in germination, indicating that these two species are genetically compatible, but natural hybrids are extremely unlikely because the two species flower at different times.[32]
Distribution and habitat
Banksia menziesii grows primarily in deep sandy soils of the
Together with
Ecology
Like many members of the family Proteaceae, Banksia menziesii is largely
Banksia menziesii provides an important food source, as flowers and seeds, for the
Twenty-one species from several
Banksia menziesii regenerates after bushfire by resprouting from its woody lignotuber, or from epicormic buds on the trunk.[31] It is generally only weakly serotinous in the southern part of its range, that is, it lacks a canopy seed bank as follicles on old flower spikes in the canopy release their seed after two years, but populations retain more seed as populations move north. Lower canopies and drier climates predispose to hotter fires that are more likely to kill plants and effect seed release, and thus facilitate seedling recruitment.[2]
All banksias have developed proteoid or cluster roots in response to the nutrient poor conditions of Australian soils (particularly lacking in phosphorus).[42] The plant develop masses of fine lateral roots that form a mat-like structure underneath the soil surface, and enable it to extract nutrients as efficiently possible out of the soil. A study of three co-occurring species in banksia woodland in southwestern Australia—Banksia menziesii, B. attenuata and B. ilicifolia—found that all three develop fresh roots in September after winter rainfall, and that the bacteria populations associated with the root systems of B. menziesii differ from the other two, and that they also change depending on the age of the roots.[43]
Along with
Cultivation
Banksia menziesii has several horticultural features including patterned buds and follicles, attractive pinkish new growth, and showy flowerheads.[8] A dwarf form is commonly sold in nurseries.[49] Byron Lamont has observed that dwarf plants may grow into taller single-trunked plants in cultivation.[48]
The plant is fairly easy to grow in a mediterranean climate with good drainage and a light (sandy) soil; however, with medium to high susceptibility to Phytophthora cinnamomi dieback,[50] it is unreliable in conditions that favour the growth of the soil-borne water mould, such as summer humidity or poor drainage.[8] The use of phosphite fungicides does reduce the spread of Phytophthora.[51] It generally does poorly in eastern Australia, although it is grown commercially in southeastern South Australia as a cut flower crop. It is also grown in California and Hawaii.[8]
Seeds do not require any treatment prior to planting, and take 26 to 40 days to germinate.[52] Seeds that grow into yellow-flowered plants are pale and unpigmented, while future bronze- and red-flowered plants are dark greyish and black respectively.[11] It generally takes about five to seven years to flower from seed. The plant favours sandy well-drained soils and a sunny position and can be heavily pruned if necessary, as new growth can arise from the lignotuber. Although it is readily propagated by seed,[8] experiments with in vitro propagation found Banksia menziesii to be more difficult than other species trialled.[53]
Art and culture
The nectar of Banksia menziesii was used in a drink by the Beeloo Whadjug Nyoongar, who were also called the Mungyt people. Along with beverages from other species, it was drunk at special sweet water festivals.[16] Banksia menziesii was the subject of a book by botanical artist Philippa Nikulinsky, which showed the progress of an inflorescence from bud through flowering to fruiting and seed release over 22 watercolour plates.[54] Noted wildflower artist Ellis Rowan also painted it.[55] It was one of several wildflowers depicted on a series of plates produced by the British pottery firm Wedgwood in the early 1990s.[54]
References
- ^ "Banksia menziesii". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
- ^ .
- ^ a b c d e f g h i George, Alex S. (1981). "The Genus Banksia L.f. (Proteaceae)". Nuytsia. 3 (3): 239–473.
- .
- .
- ^ .
- ^ .
- ^ a b c d e Collins, et al. pp. 266–67.
- PMID 12793461.
- ISBN 0-521-79421-8.
- ^ ISSN 1444-285X.
- .
- ^ "Firewood Banksia". Perth Zoo website. South Perth, WA: Government of Western Australia. 28 September 2006. Archived from the original on 9 December 2007. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
- ISBN 978-0-9803013-1-1.
- ^ Brown, Steven W. (October 2007). "Cut Flower of the Month: Banksia" (PDF). Super Floral Retailing magazine website. Topeka, Kansas: Florists' Review Enterprises. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
- ^ a b Hill, Alan L. (8–11 October 2006). Sharing Sweet Water: Culture and the Wise Use of Perth's Wetlands (PDF). 1st Australian National Hydropolis Conference. Burswood Entertainment Complex, Perth, Western Australia: Stormwater Industry Association. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
- ISBN 9781742589060.
- ^ a b Brown, Robert (1830). Supplementum Primum Prodromi Florae Novae Hollandiae. London, United Kingdom: Richard Taylor. p. 36.
- ^ "Banksia menziesii R.Br". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government.
- ^ a b George, Alex S. (1981). "The genus Banksia L.f. – A case history in Australian botany". History in the Service of Systematics: 53–59.
- A. P. de Candolle(ed.). Prodromus systematis naturalis regni vegetabilis, pars decima quarta (in Latin). Paris: Sumptibus Victoris Masson.
- ^ Bentham, George (1870). "Banksia". Flora Australiensis: A Description of the Plants of the Australian Territory. Vol. 5: Myoporineae to Proteaceae. London: L. Reeve & Co. pp. 541–62.
- ^ Kuntze, Otto (1891). Revisio generum plantarum. Vol. 2. Leipzig: Arthur Felix. pp. 581–582.
- JSTOR 4107078.
- JSTOR 4111642.
- .
- ^ ISBN 0-643-06454-0.
- PMID 21665734.
- doi:10.1071/SB04015.
- doi:10.1071/SB06016.
- ^ ISBN 0-644-07124-9. pp. 164–65.
- ^ .
- ISBN 1-876473-53-3.
- ISBN 0-949324-66-3.
- University of Western Australia Press.
- .
- .
- ^ Valentine, Leonie E.; Stock, William (December 2008). Food resources of Carnaby's Black-Cockatoo in the Gnangarra Sustainability Strategy study area (PDF) (Report). Government of Western Australia, Department of Environment and Conservation: Forest Products Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 September 2009. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
- ISBN 0-643-05006-X.
- S2CID 25249457.
- doi:10.1071/BT05079.
- ^ Beadle, N.C. (1968). "Some aspects of the ecology and physiology of Australian xeromorphic plants". Aust. J. Sci. 30: 348–355.
- .
- doi:10.1071/BT05081.
- ^ Groom, P. K.; Froend, R. H.; Mattiske, E. M.; Gurner, R. P. (2001). "Long-term changes in vigour and distribution of Banksia and Melaleuca overstorey species on the Swan Coastal Plain". Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia. 84: 63–69.
- S2CID 84912264.
- ISBN 1-86094-292-X. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ .
- ^ Walters, Brian (November 2007). "Banksia menziesii". Australian Native Plants Society (Australia). Archived from the original on 8 May 2008. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
- .
- S2CID 21296178.
- ISBN 0-643-09298-6.
- ^ Tynan, K. M.; Scott, E. S.; Sedgley, M. (2000). "Banksia propagation. In-vitro multiplication of Banksia species". Australian Plants. 21 (166): 79–82.
- ^ a b Collins, et al. p. 67.
- ISBN 0-521-84310-3. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
Cited text
- Collins, Kevin; Collins, Kathy; George, Alex S. (2008). Banksias. Melbourne, Victoria: Bloomings Books. ISBN 978-1-876473-68-6.
External links
- "Banksia menziesii R.Br". Flora of Australia Online. Department of the Environment and Heritage, Australian Government.
- "Banksia menziesii R.Br". Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- Works related to Flora Australiensis/Volume 5/Proteaceae/Banksia#Banksia menziesii at Wikisource
- Media related to Banksia menziesii at Wikimedia Commons