Blue Hakea

This most unusual Hakea occurs in south-western W.A. from York to Manjimup and east to Jerramungup, including in the Porongorup and Stirling Ranges. It grows in heath or mallee-heath, in sandy often gravelly lateritic loam soil.

It is a rounded often sprawling shrub, 0.6–1.6 m tall. Branchlets moderately to densely tomentose at flowering time. Leaves almost terete to trigonous, 2–7 cm long, 1–1.5 mm wide or diam., 1.5–2 mm deep when trigonous, glabrous; longitudinal veins 3 at angles (including marginal veins) or not visible.

Flowers are grouped to form long brushes, with 12–16 flowers per axil; pedicels grey-blue, glabrous. Perianth opening steel-blue, soon almost white.

Fruit 1 or 2 per axil, stalked, obliquely broadly elliptic, 2.2–3 cm long, 1.4–2 cm wide, covered with prickles 1–6 mm long, scarcely beaked. Seed obliquely elliptic, 18–20 mm long, 8–9 mm wide; wing extending down both sides of body and narrowly at base, not notched, dark brown with black patches or streaks.

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