Leucospermum truncatulum many faces

Leucospermum truncatulum does justice to its family name of Proteaceae by its variable appearance.

This family name is derived from Proteus, an early sea-god of Greek mythology, who personified the constantly changing nature and appearance of the sea. He was also known as the Old Man of the Sea, serving his father, Poseidon, the main Greek sea-god, as the herder of seals. The Roman counterpart of Poseidon was Neptune.

The adjective protean then means mutable, versatile or capable of assuming many forms. In the series of photos presented here, L. truncatulum adopts several guises. Some of them may serve to inspire viewers to plant this pincushion in the garden (Wikipedia).