Grow Proteas

2013·13.5 MB·English

Graham Duncan • Neville Brown • Louise Nurrish
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Wethankthefollowingpeoplefortheirkindassistanceatvariousstagesofthiswork:
PhilipBotha,DrGertBrits,LizzyFabre,ThysGreeff,AnthonyHitchcock,DeonKotze,PhilipleRoux,
GeoffNichols,Prof.MikePicker,VickiThomas,AdavanReenenandChristopherWillis.
InMemoriam
Colin Paterson-Jones
WerememberColinPaterson-Jones,
whodiedinJanuary2013,
forhisoutstandingphotographic
contributiontomanybotanical
publications,particularlyProteaceae.
Editorialassistance:CarolineVoget
Design:DavidsonDesignSolutionsandDonMayne
KirstenboschGardeningSeriesco-ordinators:GrahamDuncanandNevilleBrown
Published2013bytheSouthAfricanNationalBiodiversityInstitute
PrivateBagX7,Claremont,7735,SouthAfrica
Website:http://www.sanbi.org
Firsteditionl998,reprinted2002,secondedition201
Copyright©text:SouthAfricanNationalBiodiversityInstitute,CapeTown
Copyright©photographs:Thephotographers
Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedinanyformwhatsoeverwithouttheprior
permissionofthecopyrightowners
ISBN:978-1-919976-80-8
PrintedandboundbyShumaniPrintWorld,CapeTown
Kirstenbosch Gardening Series
GROW
PROTEAS
AGuidetotheCultivationand Propagation ofSouth African Proteaceae
TextbyGraham Duncan, Neville Brown and Louise Nurrish
Texton grafting by RobbieThomas
Photographs byGraham Duncan unlessotherwiseacknowledged
In
•
T;
Leucospermumpraecox

)
Inrecognitionofhistremendouscontribution illustratedincolouredpencilbyThaliaLincoln,
toourknowledgeoftheSouthAfrican followedbyarevisionofthegenusMimetesin
membersofthefamilyProteaceae,through 1984.In 1987hecontributedanintroduction
hisfieldobservationsandcollections,his tothefacsimileeditionofJosephKnight's
taxonomicrevisionsandmanypublications, 1809treatiseOnthecultivationoftheplants
whichhehasdonewithgreatenthusiasmand belongingtotheNaturalOrderoftheProteeae.
dedication. Amongstthemanyexcitingplantshehas
DrRourkehashadalongandsuccessful describedaretheGoldenPagoda(Mimetes
careerintaxonomicbotany,whichfocused chrysanthus fromtheGamkabergintheLittle
onhisspecialinterestinthesouthern Karoo,theCloudSugarbush(Proteanubigena)
AfricanProteaceae.Hejoinedthestaffof fromtheKwaZulu-NatalDrakensberg
theComptonHerbariumatKirstenboschin andtheMiracleClivia(Oliviamirabilis)
1966andtravelledthelengthandbreadth fromtheOorlogskloofNatureReserveat
ofSouthAfricainsearchofProteaceae, Nieuwoudtville.Healsoparticipatedinstudies
undertakingfieldstudiesonallknownspecies whichprovedthatcertainproteaswith
ofthegenusProteasouthoftheLimpopo
crypticallyconcealed,yeast-scentedflower
River.ThisresultedinhismagnumopusThe
headsarepollinatedbynocturnalrodents.
ProteasofSouthernAfrica,firstpublishedin
1980withwatercolourillustrationsprimarily DrRourkewasappointedCuratorofthe
byFayAnderson.In 1982heauthoredthe ComptonHerbariumin 1972,apositionhe
magnificentelephantfoliovolumeMimetes, helduntilhisretirementin2003.
Opposite:TheGoldenPagoda(Mimeteschrysanthus)describedbyDrRourkein 1988.
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7
Introduction
13 Cultivationguidelines
Climaticconditions 15
Hardiness 15
Soil 17
Planting 19
Watering 19
Mulching 21
Feeding 22
Pruning 23
Containercultivation 24
Greenhousecultivation 24
Attractingwildlifetothegarden 27
31 Propagationguidelines
Seed 31
Smoketreatment 33
Preparationandrootingofcuttings 36
Grafting 39
59 Pestsanddiseases
69 Majorgenera
Protea 69
Leucospermum 95
Leucadendron
11
Mimetes 135
Serruria 147
155 Minorgenera
Aulax 155
Brabejum 159
Diastella 161
Faurea 163
Orothamnus 167
Paranomus 169
173 Hybrids
178 Referencesandfurtherreading
Above:Leucadendronfloridum 18^ Usefuladdresses
Opposite:Mimeteshottentoticus 183 Glossary
184 Index
v

FoundalmostexclusivelyintheSouthernHemisphere,thefamilyProteaceaeisanancientone
whoseoriginsdatebackapproximately180-200millionyearstothetimeofGondwana,the
supercontinentwhosebreak-upanddriftresultedinsmallercontinentsincludingAfrica,Australia
andSouthAmerica,andtheIslandsofMadagascar,NewGuineaandNewZealand,amongst
others.
TheProteaceaeisdiverse,comprising80generaandmorethan 1700species.Australiahasbyfar
thehighestnumberincludingwellknowngardenplantslikeBanksiamarginata,Grevilleabanksii
andTelopeaspeciosissima(Waratah),andMacadamiaintegrifoliaisanimportantcommercial
nutcrop.TheGrevillioideae,thelargestofthefivesubfamilies,has47generaincludingBanksia,
Brabejum,Hakea,Grevillea,MacadamiaandTelopeaandcomprises981 speciesmainlyfrom
AustraliabutalsoincludingArgentina,Chile,China,Ecuador,India,Japan,Madagascar,New
Caledonia,NewGuineaandPeru.ThesubfamilyProteoideaehas25generaandcomprises641
species,mainlyfromSouthAfricabutalsoincludingAustralia,MadagascarandNewCaledonia.
ThesubfamilyPersoonioideaehasfivegeneracomprising 104speciesmainlyfromAustralia
butalsoincludingNewCaledoniaandNewZealand,thesubfamilySymphionematoideae
hastwogeneracomprisingthreespeciesfromAustraliaandTasmaniaandthesubfamily
BellendenoideaeismonotypicandendemictoTasmania(Weston&Barker2006).Ofthe 14
genera(Aulax,Brabejum,Diastella,Faurea,Leucadendron,Leucospermum,Mimetes,Orothamnus,
Paranomus,Protea,Serruria,Sorocephalus,SpatallaandVexatorella)and352speciesoccurringin
SouthAfrica,mostareendemictothewinterrainfallzonewiththeexceptionofLeucadendron
Above:Leucospermumpatersonli
Opposite:ProteacynaroidesbecamethenationalflowerofSouthAfricain 1976.
andLeucospermumwhicharealsorepresented theCapeproteasthatinspiredtheSwedish
insummerrainfallparts,Faureawhichisfound botanist,CarlLinnaeus,tonamethegenus
mainlyinthesummerrainfallzoneandalso Proteain 1735forProteus,anearlysea-god
occursinTropicalAfricaandMadagascar, ofGreekmythologywhowascapableof
andProteawhichisfoundthroughoutSouth assumingmanyformsatwill.ThefirstCape
AfricaandalsorangeswidelyinTropicalAfrica proteatofloweroutsideitshomecountry
(Rourke1980,Rebelo2001). wasProtearepens,theCommonSugarbush,
whichwasbroughtintocultivationatKew
Theterm'protea'isacollectiveoneand in 1774andfloweredthereinabout 1780.
throughoutthisbookrefersgenerallytoall
BythelateEighteenthCenturytheeminent
membersoftheProteaceaefamily.
Englishmerchant,GeorgeHibbert,had
ThefirstproteatobecultivatedattheCape establishedthegreatestlivingcollectionof
wasalmostcertainlytheWildAlmond proteasoutsidetheCapeunderglassathis
(Brabejumstellatifolium)which,by1660,had homenearLondon,andin 1809theEnglish
beenplantedasahedgetodemarcatethe gardenerJosephKnight'sexceptionaltreatise
firstformalboundaryofthenewDutch Onthecultivationoftheplantsbelonging
settlement;remnantsofwhichstillremain tothenaturalorderofProteeaeappeared,
todayatKirstenboschandinadjacent dedicatedtoGeorgeHibbert.OneofHibbert's
Bishopscourt.FromthelateSeventeenth greatesthorticulturalachievementswashis
Century,anupsurgeinmaterialfromthe skillininducingProteaholosericeatoflower,
extremelyvariednativefloraoftheCape aplantwhichhasnowherebeensuccessfully
beganreachingEuropeforcultivationin cultivatedsince,andisnowendangeredin
privatecollectionsandbotanicgardens,and itsnaturalhabitatintheKwadousbergofthe
itwasthegreatvarietyofformamongst WesternCape.
Notten
Alice
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