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Leucospermum gracile
Also called Yellow Flame Pincushion
Leucospermum gracile is a low spreading shrub of 30–40 cm (1–1⅓ ft) high and forms open mats of 1½ m (5 ft) in diameter, from the family Proteaceae. It has reddish flowering stems, oblong to linear leaves of 2–4½ cm (0.8–1.8 in) long and 2–5 mm (0.08–0.20 in) wide, with one or three teeth. The initially yellow, later orange flower heads of 2½–3 cm (1.0–1.2 in) in diameter are flat-topped. The flower heads occur from July to October. From the flowers occur long styles with a slightly thicker tip, which together give the impression of a pincushion. It is called Hermanus pincushion in English. It naturally occurs in fynbos in the southern mountains of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum gracile can be found on Shaw's Mountain between Caledon in the north and Hermanus and through the Onrus Mountains and Kleinrivier Mountains, eastwards to the hillsides near Napier, usually at 100–300 m (300–1000 ft) altitude, sometimes reaching 900 m (3000 ft). It always grows in very well drained locations, particularly in the sandy surface layers of weathered and crumbling Table Mountain Sandstone. The location further to the north near Bot River where Schlechter collected, probably went extinct as a result of agricultural introduction. The species is pollinated by birds. The ripened fruit fall to the ground approximately two months after flowering. Native ants carry them to their underground nests to eat the elaiosome. The seed remains dormant until a fire has destroyed the above-ground biomass.
Redelinghuys Pincushion · Gordon's Bay Pincushion · Arid Pincushion · Catherine's Pincushion · Grey tree-pincushion · Heart Leaf Pincushion · Red pincushion-protea · Common Pincushion · Oudtshoorn Pincushion · Silver-leaf wheel pincushion · Potberg Pincushion · Soapstone Pincushion
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Leucospermum gracile by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
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.
