Protea cynaroides big on rock

A sandstone slope in the Limietberg not far from Wellington is providing just the spot for a long life of frequent flourishing over many successful seasons to a well-positioned Protea cynaroides plant. Unlike some Protea species that do not take to the good garden soil provided with such care, P. cynaroides often performs in the garden. It is equally at home here on the mountain where nutrient availability is meagre from leaching by high rainfall.

Although much has been written in describing this unusual protea, Plukenet’s 1705 description of the plant as “the African tree-artichoke from Table Mountain” did not become the everyday descriptor of the species.

P. cynaroides occurs in all of the following rainfall regions: Western Cape winter rainfall area, southern Cape where it rains all year round and Eastern Cape summer rainfall area. The plants (as well as the flowerheads) tend to reduce in size towards the eastern extreme of the species distribution.

This Protea is known and valued for its ability to flower in every season, but plants will take time off for rest, at times looking like the one in the photo. Different variants of P. cynaroides regularly flower in their fixed blooming seasons; flowerheads of all the forms collectively do cover the calendar year (Rebello, 1995; Rourke, 1980; Eliovson, 1983; iNaturalist).