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Wilkesia gymnoxiphium
Also called Kauaʻi greensword, Kauaʻi wilkesia, Wilkesia, Kaua'i Greensword
Iliau is a rare, monocarpic rosette shrub endemic to Kauaʻi, growing on dry ridges and forest slopes. It is grown mainly by specialist collectors; plants flower once, and in a single-stemmed plant the whole rosette dies after flowering.
Wilkesia gymnoxiphium (Hawaiian iliau), is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae that is endemic to the island of Kauaʻi in Hawaiʻi. It is classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List. Wilkesia is one of three genera, with Argyroxiphium (silverswords and greenswords) and Dubautia (a larger group with many varied species) that are believed to be descendant from a single species related to the North American tarweed. The members of these three genera constitute what is called the silversword alliance, a group whose exceedingly close genetic heritage is not reflected in their exceptionally diverse morphologies.
This species occurs only on Kauaʻi, on dry ridges or dry to mesic forests. The most common location is along the slopes of Waimea Canyon. It grows at elevations of 425–1,100 m (1,394–3,609 ft) in areas that receive 800–2,000 mm (31–79 in) of annual precipitation.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Wilkesia gymnoxiphium 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.
