Hakea Facts
Hakea Facts
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| Interesting Hakea Facts: |
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| Hakea grows in the form of shrub or small tree. It can reach 3 to 20 feet in height. |
| Many species of hakea have deeply fissured bark which looks like cork, hence the nickname "corkwood" for these plants. |
| Hakea produces cylindrical, narrow, strap- or grass-like, prickly leaves. They are rigid, smooth and aromatic. Hakea is also known as "needle bush" because of its narrow leaves with sharp tips. Leaves are alternately arranged on the branches. |
| Hakea produces numerous flowers arranged in the spider-like, roundish or elongated flower heads. Flowers can be white, yellow, greenish, red, pink, purple or blue colored. They contain both types of reproductive organs (perfect flowers). |
| Hakea can bloom during the winter, spring or summer (depending on the species). Flowers are rich source of nectar which attracts honeyeaters, insects and small marsupials, main pollinators of these plants. |
| Fruit of hakea is reddish-brown, woody capsule filled with two seeds. Fruit can be beak-shaped (Bird's Beak Hakea), dagger-shaped (Dagger Hakea) or warty frog-like (Frog Hakea). Capsules often remain on the branches until the next flowering season. |
| Hakea produces miniature, flaky seed, equipped with asymmetrical wings which facilitate dispersal by wind. |
| Hakea propagates via seed and cuttings. Capsule splits after exposure to heat. |
| Some species of hakea have underground swelling of the stem, called lignotuber, which stores nutrients and energy. It facilitates regeneration of a plant in the case of wildfire. |
| Hakea is named after Baron Christian Ludwig von Hake, who funded the work of certain botanists focused on hakea species. |
| Hakea is often cultivated in gardens. Besides their ornamental morphology, prickly leaves of hakea can provide protection against burglars. |
| Aborigines used root of hakea as a source of water and flowers as a source of food (nectar). They used bark in treatment of open sores and burns on the skin. |
| Woody capsule of hakea are used for the preparation of various floral arrangements and decorative items (capsules without seed often have interesting design). |
| Roots of some species of hakea were used for the manufacture of smoking pipes during the 19th century. |
| Hakea is perennial plant which means that it can survive more than 2 years in the wild. |
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