New South Wales Waratah
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Order:	Proteales
Family:	Proteaceae
Genus:	Telopea
Species:	T. speciosissima
Binomial name
Telopea speciosissima (Sm.) R.Br.

Telopea speciosissima, commonly known as the New South Wales Waratah or simply Waratah, is a large shrub in the Proteaceae family. It is endemic to New South Wales in Australia and is the floral emblem of that state. It is renowned for its striking large crimson flowerheads in spring.

Description

The New South Wales Waratah is a large erect shrub up to 3 or 4 metres (10-13 ft) in height with one or more stems. It has dark-green leaves which are alternate, usually coarsely-toothed and range from 13 to 25 cm (5-10 in) in length. The inflorescences, which appear in spring, are large and crimson coloured. They consist of a 7-10 cm diameter domed flower head ringed by bracts which are 5 to 7 cm (2-3 in) long. These are followed by large pods which eventually turn brown and split open revealing winged seeds inside.

Distribution

The species is found on the Central Coast, South Coast and nearby ranges in New South Wales. It usually occurs as an understorey shrub in open forest on sandy soils in areas with moderately high rainfall.

Cultivation

Although they grow naturally on deep sandy soils, the species has proved adaptable to other deep, well -drained soils, especially where natural slopes assist drainage. Despite their natural occurrence in woodland, waratahs flower best in full sun.

They are a popular cut flower and are grown commercially in Australia north of Sydney and in the Dandenong Ranges near Melbourne. They are also grown commercially in New Zealand, Hawaii and Israel.

Cultivars

A number of natural forms have been selected for cultivation as follows:

• 'Corroboree' - form with extended styles
• 'Wirrimbirra White' - white colour form from Kangaloon near Robertson.
• 'Shady Lady White' - white colour form

In addition, a number of interspecific hybrids have also been produced, including the following:

• 'Braidwood Brilliant' - a frost-tolerant hybrid between T. speciosissima and T. mongaensis
• 'Shade of Pale' - a hybrid between T. speciosissima and T. oreades
• 'Shady Lady Crimson', 'Shady Lady Red' and 'Shady Lady Pink' – crimson, red and pink flowering hybrids between T. speciosissima and T. oreades.

Symbolic and artistic references

The striking form of the New South Wales Waratah became a popular motif in Australian Art in the early part of the twentieth century and was incorporated in art nouveau designs of the time. In 1925, artist Margaret Preston produced a hand-coloured woodcut depicting waratahs. The species also appeared on an Australian 3 shilling stamp in 1959 designed by botanical illustrator Margaret Jones and a 30c stamp in 1968.

In 1962 it was proclaimed as the official floral emblem of New South Wales. Since that time, the species has also been adopted by others, including former department store Grace Bros and the New South Wales Waratahs rugby union team.

Taxonomy

The New South Wales Waratah was first described by botanist James Edward Smith in his 1793 A Specimen of the Botany of New Holland, from "very fine dried specimens sent by Mr. White". He gave the species its original binomial name of Embothrium speciosissimum. It was given its current name of Telopea speciossima by botanist Robert Brown in 1810. The specific epithet is derived from the Latin word speciosus meaning 'beautiful' or 'handsome'.

See also

• List of Australian floral emblems

References

• Australian National Botanic Gardens - Floral Emblem of New South Wales
• Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney: Growing the New South Wales Waratah
• PlantNET – New South Wales Flora online: Telopea speciosissima
• Australian Plant Name Index, IBIS database, Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government, Canberra
• Growing waratahs commercially