MELBOURNE STREET TREES 32 - GREVILLEA

Grevillea is a diverse genus of about 360 species of evergreen flowering plants in the protea family Proteaceae, native to rainforest and more open habitats in Australia, New Guinea, New Caledonia, Indonesia and Sulawesi. It was named in honour of Charles Francis Greville. The species range from prostrate shrubs less than 50 cm  tall to trees 35 m tall. Common names include grevillea, spider flower, silky oak and toothbrush plant. Closely related to the genus Hakea, the genus gives its name to the subfamily Grevilleoideae.

Grevillea 'Robyn Gordon' is a very popular grevillea cultivar which has been planted widely in Australia and other countries.It is a shrub that grows to 2 metres in height and up to 3 metres width and has attractive divided leaves The red inflorescences are about 15 cm long by 9 cm wide.

The cultivar, which is a cross between a red-flowered form of Grevillea banksii and G. bipinnatifida, was selected by David Gordon in Queensland for its prolific and sustained flowering. Trials, which began in 1963, demonstrated stability in its characteristics and it was released to the nursery trade in 1968. It was registered in 1973 under the name 'Robyn Gordon' in memory of a family member who died in 1969, aged 16.

Along with a number of other grevilleas, the cultivar may cause allergic contact dermatitis for certain individuals who come into contact with it.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.