Waratah

The waratah bears blood-red, hand-sized flower heads that stand out from afar in the grey-green bush around Sydney.

The waratah is a shrub growing to 3–4 m, with leathery, toothed leaves. In spring, from September to November, it produces showy, dome-shaped flower heads up to 15 cm across, made up of several hundred small red flowers surrounded by red bracts. The genus name Telopea means “seen from afar” in Greek, and the word waratah comes from the language of the Dharug Aboriginal people. The flowers are pollinated by birds, and after fires the shrub resprouts from a woody root swelling (lignotuber).

Significance in the country

The waratah has been the official emblem of New South Wales since 1962 and gave its name to, among others, the NSW Waratahs rugby team. At the turn of the 20th century it was a serious contender for Australia’s national flower.

Where it grows

Found only in New South Wales – on poor sandstone soils around Sydney, in the Blue Mountains and along the coast from around Gosford south to Ulladulla.

More: Wikipedia (en)