Banksia hookeriana - Hooker's Banksia - 5 seeds

Banksia hookeriana, commonly known as Hooker's Banksia is one of the Western Australian Banksia.  It is found on the mid west coast of Western Australia in the Irwin region where it grows in open thickets in light sandy soil with an annual rainfall of about 600mm. 
 
It is an attractive, dense, compact shrub to about 2 to 3m high with a similar spread, this is a very floriferous species and a mature plant can be a mass of blooms.
 
It has smooth long narrow leaves from 10 to 25cm in length and 1cm in width with small serrated teeth along the edges, the under-surface of young foliage is grey and woolly. 
 
The flower spikes are short thick and cylindrical, 8 to 10cm long and 6 to 8cm in width and presented showily in terminal spikes.  They are erect and attractive at all stages, before the flower spikes open they are a velvety white and resemble a white lampshade and with maturity they become acorn-shaped in a bright gold and white turning finally to completely gold/orange.
 
Fruits are cones somewhat narrower than the flower spikes, cylindrical to 4 to 5cm in diameter.
 
Like all Banksias, it is excellent for attracting honey eating birds.
 
In cultivation Hooker's Banksia requires a composted slightly acid to neutral sand in an open sunny position.  It is an attractive fast-growing species that is drought tolerant and moderately frost hardy, however it is suited to cultivation in areas with a dry Summer climate but is difficult to maintain in areas of high Summer humidity.
 
Propagation is from seed is straightforward, seed should be sown into a standard seed raising mix and watered as required. Plant out young seedlings as soon as practical to avoid too much root disturbance.  Plant into well drained soil with an acidic pH of around 6.0 to 6.5.  Phosphorus fertilisers are toxic to the plant as it can take up even the smallest traces of this element. 
 
5 premium quality seeds shipped on receipt of cleared funds.