Protea laurifolia

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Protea laurifolia
Protea Laurifolia Grey-leaf Sugarbush.jpg
Cederberg, South Africa
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Genus: Protea
Species:
P. laurifolia
Binomial name
Protea laurifolia
Synonyms [3] [4]
  • Protea comigera Stapf
  • Protea marginata Thunb.
  • Protea lepidocarpon Sims
  • Protea melaleuca R.Br.
  • Scolymocephalus marginatus Kuntze
  • Scolymocephalus melaleucus(R.Br.) Kuntze

Protea laurifolia, also known as the grey-leaf sugarbush, [3] [5] [6] is a shrub from South Africa. [6] [7] It is native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa. [8]

Contents

Another vernacular name for this species is laurel sugarbush. In Afrikaans this species is known by the common names of louriersuikerbos, lourier-suikerbos, suikerbos and suikerkan. [3]

Protea laurifolia was first described by Carl Peter Thunberg in 1806. [2]

Description

Protea laurifolia is a tall, erect shrub which can grow up to eight metres in height. [6] The leaves are grey to bluish green and short-stalked with horny margins. [9] It flowers from mid-Autumn to early Winter, or from April to November. [5] [6] The plant is monoecious with both sexes in each flower. [6]

It is similar to P. neriifolia, but has a more westerly distribution. P. neriifolia has sessile (no petiole) leaves, which curve upwards and are often somewhat more greenish. [9]

Distribution

This plant species is endemic to South Africa, but occurs in both the Northern and Western Cape provinces. [3] It is found from Nieuwoudtville to Franschhoek and Anysberg. [6] In the Western Cape it occurs in the Elands Kloof in the Hottentots Holland Mountains and the Agterwitzenberg Vlakte in the Skurweberg Mountains, part of the Koue Bokkeveld mountain range. [5]

Ecology

It grows in sandy or granite soils, at altitudes of 400 to 1,200 metres. [6] It is usually found in a fynbos habitat, but sometimes also grows on shale, or in renosterveld or scrubland. [3]

The adult plants are killed by the periodic wildfires of its habitat, but its seeds survive these events. The fruits are woody and persistent, which means they are retained on the plant after senescence. [6] The burnt skeletons of trees release the seeds from the retained dry flower heads in the season following a wildfire. [5] The seeds are dispersed by means of the wind. [6]

Horticulture

The hybrid cultivar 'Rose Mink' was selected by Dennis Perry and is sold in the US as an ornamental plant. It is fairly frost-hardy in southern Californian gardens. [7]

Conservation

The status of world population is not considered threatened. [6] It was first assessed as 'least concern' by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) in 2009. According to the 2019 SANBI assessment the overall population is decreasing, but it was nonetheless still assessed as 'least concern'. [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>Protea neriifolia</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea neriifolia, also known as the narrow-leaf sugarbush, oleander-leaved sugarbush, blue sugarbush, or the oleanderleaf protea, is a flowering plant in the genus Protea, which is endemic to South Africa.

<i>Protea gaguedi</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea gaguedi is a species of tree which belongs to the genus Protea.

<i>Protea scolymocephala</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea scolymocephala, also known as the thistle protea or thistle sugarbush, is a flowering plant from the genus Protea native to South Africa.

<i>Protea magnifica</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea magnifica, commonly known as the queen protea, is a shrub, which belongs to the genus Protea within the family Proteaceae, and which is native to South Africa.

<i>Protea effusa</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea effusa, sometimes known as the scarlet sugarbush, is a flowering plant which belongs to the genus Protea. The plant is endemic to the Western Cape province of South Africa. In the Afrikaans language the vernacular name blosrooisuikerbos has been recorded for this plant.

<i>Protea namaquana</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea namaquana, also known as the Kamiesberg sugarbush, is a flowering plant which belongs to the genus Protea. The plant is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region of South Africa, in particular the Kamiesberg mountains of Namaqualand in the Northern Cape province. The species has a worldwide distribution of only 18 km2. It is regarded as critically endangered. In the Afrikaans language it has the vernacular name is Kamiesbergsuikerbos.

<i>Protea pendula</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea pendula, also known as the nodding sugarbush or arid sugarbush, is a flowering plant of the genus Protea, in the family Proteaceae, which is only found growing in the wild in the Cape Region of South Africa. In the Afrikaans language it is known as knikkopsuikerbossie or ondersteboknopprotea.

<i>Protea intonsa</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea intonsa, also known as the tufted sugarbush, is a flowering plant of the genus Protea within the family Proteaceae, endemic to South Africa, where it is distributed from the eastern Swartberg and Kammanassie Mountains to the Baviaanskloof mountains. In Afrikaans it is known as klossie-suikerbos.

<i>Protea vogtsiae</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea vogtsiae, also known as the Kouga sugarbush, is a small flowering shrub of the genus Protea within the family Proteaceae, which is only found growing in the wild in the southern Cape Region of South Africa.

<i>Protea rubropilosa</i> Flowering tree

Protea rubropilosa, also known as the Transvaal sugarbush, escarpment sugarbush or Transvaal mountain sugarbush, is a flowering tree, that belongs to the genus Protea in the family Proteaceae. The plant only occurs in South Africa.

<i>Protea pudens</i> Flowering tree

Protea pudens, also known as the bashful sugarbush, is a low-growing, groundcover-like, flowering shrub in the genus Protea. It is only found growing in the wild in a small area in the Western Cape province of South Africa.

<i>Protea susannae</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea susannae, also known as stink-leaf sugarbush, is a flower-bearing shrub of the genus Protea. The plant is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region of South Africa.

<i>Protea glabra</i> Species of flowering shrub

Protea glabra, also called the Clanwilliam sugarbush, is a flowering shrub belonging to the genus Protea.

<i>Protea lorifolia</i> Species of shrub

Protea lorifolia, in English called the strap-leaved sugarbush, strap-leaved protea or strap-leaf sugarbush is a flowering shrub which belongs to the genus Protea.

Protea restionifolia, which is also known as the Reed-leaf sugarbush, is a flowering shrub endemic to the Western Cape province of South Africa where it is found from the upper part of the Breede River Valley through the Bot River Valley to Wolseley and the Koue Bokkeveld Mountains.

<i>Protea laevis</i> Species of shrub

Protea laevis, also known as the smooth-leaf sugarbush, is a flowering shrub that belongs within the genus Protea.

<i>Protea revoluta</i> Species of flowering plant

Protea revoluta, also known as the roll-leaved sugarbush or rolled-leaf sugarbush, is a species of plant which is classified in the genus Protea. P. revoluta is only found growing in the wild in South Africa, where plants can be found growing between the Cederberg inland on the Atlantic coast and the Witteberg area to the north.

<i>Protea caespitosa</i> Species of plant

Protea caespitosa, also known as hottentot bishop sugarbush or bishop sugarbush, is a flowering shrub belonging to the genus Protea which is only found growing in the wild in South Africa.

<i>Protea punctata</i> Species of flowering plant

Protea punctata, also known as the water sugarbush or water white sugarbush, is a shrub belonging to the genus Protea which is found growing in the wild in South Africa.

<i>Protea scolopendriifolia</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea scolopendriifolia, also known as the harts-tongue-fern sugarbush or hart's-tongue-fern sugarbush, is a flowering shrub endemic to South Africa, where it occurs in both the Western and Eastern Cape. It is found from the Cederberg, through the Kogelberg, Riviersonderend Mountains and Swartberg, to the Kouga Mountains. It blooms in Spring, from September to December.

References

  1. Rebelo, A.G.; Mtshali, H.; von Staden, L. (2020). "Protea laurifolia". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T113210311A185560712. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T113210311A185560712.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Protea laurifolia". International Plant Names Index . The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Harvard University Herbaria & Libraries and Australian National Botanic Gardens. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rebelo, A.G.; Mtshali, H.; von Staden, L. (3 June 2019). "Grey-leaf Sugarbsh". Red List of South African Plants. version 2020.1. South African National Biodiversity Institute . Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  4. "Protea laurifolia Thunb". Plants of the World Online . Kew Science. 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Protea laurifolia (Grey-leaf sugarbush)". Biodiversity Explorer. Iziko - Museums of South Africa. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Bearded Sugarbushes - Proteas". Protea Atlas Project Website. 11 March 1998. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Protea laurifolia 'Rose Mink'". www.smgrowers.com. San Marcos Growers. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  8. "Protea laurifolia". Germplasm Resources Information Network . Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture . Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  9. 1 2 van Wyk, Braam; van Wyk, Piet (1997). Field Guide to trees of South Africa. Cape Town: Struik. pp. 216, 217. ISBN   1-86825-922-6.