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Banksia menziesii 'Dwarf' (Flame Banksia) - A showy evergreen shrub to 5 to 6 feet tall by 6 to 8 feet wide with thick woolly branches and serrated dark green leaves that are grayish new growth and remain so on the underside of the leaf. In late summer into winter appear the large showy 6-inch-tall fat cones of two toned reddish-pink and orange flowers.
Plant in the open location in full sun in a well-drained soil and irrigated infrequently. It is drought tolerant and cod hardy to around 26 °F and tolerates near coastal conditions with some protection. Tip prune after flowering to shape and maintain compact growth. This is a great plant for a hillside planting, a low screen or for large containers. It is attractive to birds and flowers are great in floral arrangements.
Banksia menziesii is considered to be one of the iconic Western Australian banksias and is found growing from near Perth north to the Murchison River where it is generally growing on sandy soils in low woodlands. The name for the genus is one given by Carolus Linnaeus to honor the English botanist Sir Joseph Banks, who was on Captain James Cook's first expedition to Australia and collected the first Banksia specimens in 1770. The specific epithet honors Archibald Menzies, who was the surgeon and naturalist on the HMS Discovery under Captain George Vancouver on the over four-year voyage that circumnavigated the globe and made contact with five continents. It is commonly known in Australian as Firewood Banksia because of its quick-burning properties, but is also known as Menzies Banksia or as Firewheel Banksia, Port Wine Banksia, Flame Banksia, Raspberry Frost or Strawberry Banksia for its attractive flowers.
Our plants came to us from Obra Verde Nursery. This selection is only called the dwarf form as the species, Banksia menziesii, can grow to be a very large shrub or tree to 20 to 30 feet tall. The picture on this page supplied to us by Jo O'Connell at Australian Native Plants.
The information displayed on this page about Banksia menziesii 'Dwarf' 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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