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Leucadendron 'Red Gem' - This bushy shrub reaches 4 feet tall. Its leaves are green with a small section of red near the rounded tip which is accentuated by fine silvery hairs (besides the size this distinguishes it from 'Safari Sunset'). During the initiation of bloom (in late summer), the plant begins to take on a bronzy appearance - the reddish bracts surround the yellowish female cones.
Plant in full sun in a well-drained soil and irrigate occasionally to infrequently once established. Tolerates wind and frosts to below 22 ° F. A very nice-looking dense shrub with foliage to the ground, making it a good choice for screening but the flowering stems are short, so while nice in the vase for the home gardener, they are not long enough to be grown for cut flower use.
Leucadendron 'Red Gem' is a hybrid between Leucadendron laureolum and Leucadendron salignum that was introduced by Jean Stevens at Steven's Nursery in Whanganui, New Zealand in the 1950s - she was also one of the greatest of New Zealand's iris breeders. Her son-in-law Ian Bell later introduced the incredibly popular Leucadendron 'Safari Sunset' from this same location in the early 1960s. It received the Royal NZ Institute of Horticulture's Plant Raiser’s Award in 1982 and is known just as 'Gem' in Australia. We grew this nice plant from 2003 until 2012.
The information displayed on this page about Leucadendron 'Red Gem' 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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