In the Field: Leucospermum – Pincushions

Spring has finally sprung here in Rainbow! The Leucospermum fields are slowly starting to come to life, and with your first glimpse of these unique looking flowers… you just might think a fireworks display somehow fell out of the sky.

Some of the most popular members of the Proteaceae family, Leucospermum are easily recognized by their flower-heads with long, conspicuous styles, each one thickened at its apex to form a pollen presenter. Together the mass of styles, look a lot like pins bristling from a pincushion, a similarity that has given rise to their popular name Pincushions.

Unlike flowers of the genus Protea, which rely on their showy bracts for visual appeal, Leucospermum put all their art into the colors of the flowers themselves as well as the flowing shape of each curving component. These fanciful blooms atop sturdy stems create colorful focal points in the field and when displayed in floral designs.

Leucospermums are not only popular for their beautiful flowering heads, but the plants are also easily cultivated and make wonderful garden shrubs. They are fast growing and can produce a fabulous display of yellow, orange, red and even multi-colored blooms for years when grow under the right conditions.

Flowering Gums

This summer, we're embracing familiar yet often overlooked blooms in the field: flowering Gums. The lush evergreen leaves of the Corymbia ficifolia or Gum Tree are harvested year-round and have become a popular foliage for garlands and wreaths. However, did you know that many varieties of gum produce a profusion of bright flower clusters during the summer? These flowers are not typical flowers though, as these showy blooms are made up mostly of anthers and styles, rather than petals. And in most species, the buds appear in masses on a single stem that develops on the axil of the leaves. These nectar-rich flowers can be found in hues of white, yellow, cream, red, pink, salmon, orange or even bi-colors and the stamens are held in small cup-like bases.

Flowering Gum Bouquet

Apricot Delight

Summer Snow

Calypso Queen

Summer Glory

Fairy Floss

Little Sweetie

Summer Beauty

Bush Lollies

When it comes to holidays, July 20 has a little something for everyone! Not only is it Mel’s Birthday, Ugly Truck Day and National Fortune Cookie Day, it's also National Lollipop Day!

Ah, lollipops… the kid-time favorite is reminiscent of Disneyland where large twister lollipops are a popular treat. What? Not your idea of a ‘healthy’ treat? Swearing off the fake sugars and dyes? Watching calories?

Well then, delight your eyes (eye-candy) and arouse your fingers with these texture-packed pops. A beautiful bunch of Blush Lollies or grevillea flowers as we call them, may be one of the healthiest treats you can get. These gorgeous lollipop-like blooms are perfect if you’re looking for something a little unusual and screaming with color.

Delightful and ever so sweet, these gorgeous flowers have been satisfying the senses for generations, possibly even for centuries. Did you know that Grevillea flowers were a traditional favorite among Aborigines for their sweet nectar? The pollen could be shaken onto the hand to enjoy or mixed with a little water to make a sweet drink. And, these awesome blossoms are also extremely popular among the birds, bees and butterflies.

Happy Lollipop Day and of course, Happy Birthday Mel!

What’s Blooming: Leucadendron

The rumors are true, it’s ‘Leucadendron Season’. Often one of the first hints of spring in our fields, leucadendron serve as a welcoming committee for warmer and longer days. These barometers of the season begin to emerge as winter winds down, blooming from the cold days of February all the way through May. Though often known as "conebush" due to their colorful nuts, leucadendron are considered the foliage side of the protea family. Most leucadendron are indigenous to South Africa, though some varieties have been found in Australia as well. Around 80 known species exist and all share the same emphasis: the beauty of their foliage. The colorful petals of the leucadendron are called bracts (modified leaves), and the true flower is the cone nestled among their bracts.

Leucadendron includes evergreen shrubs and small trees which have green, often waxy, leaves which are arranged in spirals on the stem. They are dioeceous plants. That is, the male and female plant parts are produced in separate flowers on separate plant species of all species in this genus. Leucadendron thrive in freely-draining soil. They require sunlight most of the day and can be propagated by cuttings or seed.

With so many fabulous varieties to choose from, it's hard to play favorites with leucadendron, but we've gathered a few outstanding varieties for you here.

New in the Field: Grandicolor

Our fields are looking a little more colorful these days thanks to ‘Grandicolor’, a new hybrid protea from Australia. This beautiful cultivar is a combination of P. grandiceps and P. aurea, a very unusual and unique cross to say the least. Its greenish-cream bracts, which deepen to peach at the base, have a delicate pinkish rim and conspicuous hairs like the grandiceps and surround rusty-red centers. Grandicolor produces dainty, petite blooms off and on from autumn through spring. The egg-shape foliage is small and leathery with a silvery-green hue and the stems straight and upright like the aurea.

From our field to the vase Grandicolor lives up to its name!