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[2nd Image]
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| Category: Shrub |
| Family: Proteaceae (Proteas) |
| Origin: South Africa (Africa) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: Red |
| Bloomtime: Fall/Winter |
| Height: 6-8 feet |
| Width: 4-6 feet |
| Exposure: Full Sun |
| Seaside: Yes |
| Summer Dry: Yes |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): Low Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 25-30° F |
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Protea obtusifolia (Limestone Sugarbush) - Well shaped shrub to 9 feet tall with rich dark green leaves and large flowers with tightly overlapping pinkish red petals in fall though winter with some flowers lingering into spring. Plant in full sun in most any soil including clay and alkaline soils. Once established this plant is drought tolerant, requiring little irrigation. This long cultivated Protea is noted both for its beautiful flowers and for its reliability in the garden with long life and great tolerance for coastal conditions and alkaline soils (as high as pH 8.4). It is a great choice as a screening or hedge plant. To encourage dense growth and good branching structure plants should be pruned at a young age. The one drawback of this species is that it is not particularly cold hardy and early frosts can damage new growth, flowers and buds so protection may be required if temperatures drop below 29 F. Short stems have made this plant less desirable as a florist crop but flowers are extremely attractive and hold well in the vase. Photo courtesy of Jo O'Connell of Australian Native Plant Nursery in Ojai, CA.
The information displayed on this page about Protea obtusifolia is based on our research conducted about this plant from books in our nursery library as well as from information that is provided by reliable online resources. We also have included our own observations made about it as it grew in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers when we had them in our nursery field. We also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.
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