Species

Hakea salicifolia

Etymology

salicifolia: willow-leaved

Common Name(s)

Willow-leaved hakea

Authority

Hakea salicifolia (Vent.) B.L.Burtt

Family

Proteaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Exotic

NVS Species Code

HAKSLC

The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Trees & Shrubs

Habitat

Terrestrial. A coastal and lowland plant (Timmins & MacKenzie 1995). The plant is found at sites with low fertility (Timmins & MacKenzie 1995). A plant confined to very poor soils (Timmins & MacKenzie 1995). The plant is found in low forest, scrub and forest margin, shrubland and fernlands (Timmins & MacKenzie 1995).

Features

Large erect shrub or small tree, glabrous except for silky hairs on very young shoots and leaves. Shoots angular. Leaves sessile to shortly petiolate, flattened, 60-110 x 5-15mm, narrowly elliptic-oblong or narrow-elliptic, entire, coriaceous; base attenuate; apex acute, not spiny. Flowers in fasicles of up to about 20. Pedicels 3-7mm long. Perianth white, < pedicel; limb curled back against tube. Ovary sessile; style glabrous; stigma cone large, oblique. Fruit 2-2.7 x 1.3-1.6cm, tuberculate; beak curved. Seed 15-20 x 5-7mm (including wing), black; wing extending down 1 side. (Webb et. al., 1988)

Similar Taxa

Large erect shrub or tree, without hair except for silky hairs on very young shoots and leaves. Not prickly. Leaves flattened and elliptic (rounded at both ends, widest in the middle) to 110 mm long. Capdule woody with beak t 1.6 cm long, seed winged down one side. Flowers August-November. Can be distinguished from downy hakea and needlebush (prickly hakea) as it is flat leaved and not prickly. Could be confused with phyllode bearing wattles e.g. Sydney golden wattle (Racosperma longifolia) (DOC, 1998).

Flowering

August, September, October, November

Flower Colours

Cream,White

Fruiting

Fruit are always present because follicles persist on tree (Timmins & MacKenzie 1995).

Year Naturalised

1908

Origin

E Australia

Reason For Introduction
Ornamental

Life Cycle Comments
Perennial. Perennial.

Reproduction
Seeds. No vegetative reproduction.

Seed
Seed production is approximately 25 000 seeds at 15-20cm d.b.h. A seed bank is formed on trees not soil.

Dispersal
Seed is dispersed by gravity and wind.

Tolerances
The plant is slightly tolerant of shade, highly tolerant of drought and intolerant of poor drainage. At the adult stage the plant is slightly intolerant to frost. The plant does not resprout from the base after physical damage. Fire kills the plant but serotonous seed capsules release seed if fire not severe.

This page last updated on 5 Oct 2011