Grevillea banksii – White-flowered Banks’ Grevillea

Description

Grevillea banksii – White-flowered Form

Family: Proteaceae
Packet Size: 8 seeds

Description

This offering is seed from a white-flowered selection of Grevillea banksii, a Queensland native commonly called Banks’ Grevillea or Red Silky Oak. Despite that traditional common name, this is not the large Australian Silky Oak tree, Grevillea robusta. The white form is valued for its upright clusters of creamy-white spider-like flowers set against finely divided, silvery-green leaves.

Grevillea banksii is commonly grown as a shrub or small tree in warm districts. Flowers provide nectar for honeyeaters and insects. Seed-grown plants can differ from their parent in growth habit and flower colour, particularly where nearby grevilleas cross-pollinate; a cutting-grown plant is more reliable if an exact white-flowered form is required.

Important – seed-grown flower colour: Seeds from a white-flowered parent do not guarantee white-flowered seedlings or a uniform plant habit.

Key Features

• Parent flowers: Creamy white to pale flower clusters on the white-flowered parent selection.
• Seedling variation: Offspring from seed may produce flowers of another shade and may have a different mature shape.
• Foliage: Attractive silvery-green, deeply divided leaves.
• Habit: Warm-climate shrub or small tree, with height and width depending on the selected form and growing conditions.
• Wildlife: Nectar-bearing flowers visited by honeyeaters, bees and other pollinators.

Growing Conditions

• Position: Full sun for robust growth and prolific flowering.
• Soil: Well-drained sandy or loamy soil; avoid heavy, stagnant, waterlogged soil.
• Fertiliser: Use a fertiliser formulated for phosphorus-sensitive native plants, if feeding is needed.
• Watering: Water regularly until established, then water during extended dry spells as needed.
• Climate: Best in warm, frost-free or lightly frosted coastal and subtropical conditions; protect young plants from hard frost.

Seed Propagation

1. Prepare: Use a clean, freely draining, low-phosphorus native seed-raising mix in pots or trays.
2. Optional dormancy treatment: Some Grevillea seeds show dormancy, but their coats are not necessarily water-impermeable. Smoke-water treatment or a very careful shallow nick may assist some seed lots; results vary, so trial a few seeds first and avoid damaging the embryo.
3. Sow: Sow shallowly, covering by approximately the thickness of the seed, and firm gently.
4. Position: Keep in a warm, bright sheltered position with filtered light while seedlings are small.
5. Water: Maintain gentle, even moisture without waterlogging. Germination may be irregular and take time.
6. Pot on: Move established seedlings to individual pots and slowly acclimatise them to full sun.

Germination advice: These instructions are a recommended guide. Germination results and timing may vary depending on seed freshness, storage, temperature and growing conditions. Alternative propagation methods may also be successful.