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Banksia spinulosa
Also called Golden Candlesticks, Hill Banksia
Hairpin banksia is a shrub or small straggly tree from eastern Australia, grown for its distinctive gold flower spikes and as a bird-attracting ornamental. The key to growing it is well-drained, acidic, sandy soil in full sun.
Banksia spinulosa, the hairpin banksia, is a species of woody shrub, of the genus Banksia in the family Proteaceae, native to eastern Australia. Widely distributed, it is found as an understorey plant in open dry forest or heathland from Victoria to northern Queensland, generally on sandstone though sometimes also clay soils. It generally grows as a small shrub to 2 metres (7 ft) in height, though can be a straggly tree to 6 metres (20 ft). It has long narrow leaves with inflorescences which can vary considerably in coloration; while the spikes are gold or less commonly yellowish, the emergent styles may be a wide range of colours – from black, purple, red, orange or yellow.
Banksia spinulosa was named by James Edward Smith in England in 1793, after being collected by John White, most likely in 1792. He gave it the common name prickly-leaved banksia, though this has fallen out of use.
Banksia spinulosa var. spinulosa was introduced into cultivation in the United Kingdom in 1788 by Joseph Banks who supplied seed to Kew, Cambridge Botanic Gardens and Woburn Abbey among others; var. collina followed in 1800 and var. cunninghamii in 1822. It has proven a highly ornamental and bird-attracting plant in cultivation. Southern and montane provenance forms are frost hardy. In general, all forms prefer sandy, well-drained soils with sunny aspect, though some local forms hailing from Wianamatta shales may tolerate heavier soils. It is resistant to dieback, like most eastern banksias. As it grows naturally on acid soils, Banksia spinulosa is particularly sensitive to iron deficiency. Known as chlorosis, it manifests as yellowing of new leaves with preservation of green veins, and occurs when the plant is grown in soils of higher pH. This can also happen where soil contains quantities of cement, either as landfill or building foundations, and can be treated with iron chelate or sulfate.
The hairpin banksia occurs along the east coast of Australia from the Dandenong Ranges east of Melbourne, Victoria, north through New South Wales and into Queensland. It is common north to Maryborough, with disjunct populations occurring as far north as the Atherton Tableland near Cairns. It occurs in a variety of habitats, from coastal heath (spinulosa and collina) and elevated rocky slopes (neoanglica and spinulosa) to inland dry sclerophyll forest dominated by eucalypts, where they form part of the understorey. Plants in exposed areas are generally considerably shorter than those in sheltered areas. It usually occurs on sand, but can be found in rocky clays or loams.
Heath-leaf banksia · Coast banksia · Banksia littoralis · Silver banksia · Menzie's Banksia · Banksia petiolaris · Acorn Banksia · Creeping Banksia · Broadleaf Banksia · Banksia seminuda · Banksia serrata · Parrot Bush
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Banksia spinulosa by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
